Tim Scott links crypto regulation to the affordability crisis; Senate vote scheduled for next week

Source: Yellow Original Title: Tim Scott links crypto regulation to the affordability crisis; Senate vote scheduled for next week

Original Link: Senate Banking Committee Chairman, Tim Scott, said that lawmakers are preparing to push a comprehensive bill on the structure of the cryptocurrency market next week, arguing that clearer rules for digital assets could play a direct role in improving affordability and expanding financial access for Americans.

Scott said that the Senate Banking Committee plans to vote on the legislation, known as the CLARITY Act, after months of internal negotiations and multiple drafts circulated among committee members.

The bill is designed to establish a regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry that Scott described as intentionally “light” but still providing consumer and market protections.

Scott said the legislation aligns with broader Republican efforts in 2026 to focus on affordability, presenting crypto policy as an economic tool rather than a niche technological issue.

He argued that clearer market rules could reduce transaction costs, increase competition, and enable Americans to move money more efficiently through always-active digital financial systems.

A push to link crypto policy with affordability

Scott framed the legislation as part of a broader economic agenda focused on lowering costs and increasing financial flexibility.

He said that market structure rules could help everyday users by improving access to financial services, increasing the range of options, and supporting real-time transactions that operate beyond traditional banking hours.

Drawing from his own experience growing up in poverty, Scott stated that expanding financial access could have significant consequences for families struggling to make ends meet.

He linked the bill’s goals to what he described as an effort to reverse the economic pressures that households have felt in recent years.

The senator emphasized that the committee has spent over six months refining the proposal, aiming to ensure that lawmakers are fully informed before the next amendments vote.

What the CLARITY Act aims to do

Although the final text of the bill is still being finalized, Scott outlined several core objectives.

These include reducing transaction costs by encouraging competition, establishing clearer definitions so companies understand which rules apply to them, and strengthening protections for consumers and investors.

The legislation also seeks to install safeguards against money laundering and illicit finance, while clarifying how different segments of the crypto ecosystem should be regulated at the federal level.

A key focus is defining the treatment of decentralized finance in U.S. legislation, as well as drawing a clearer line between the oversight roles of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

Supporters say that clearer jurisdictional boundaries could reduce regulatory uncertainty that has led some crypto companies to operate outside the United States.

Keeping crypto jobs in the United States

Scott stated that the bill also aims to ensure that future jobs, investments, and innovation related to crypto stay in the U.S. rather than migrating abroad.

Lawmakers increasingly present the market structure legislation as a matter of competitiveness, arguing that prolonged uncertainty risks ceding digital finance leadership to other jurisdictions.

The senator said he is confident that the bill can pass out of committee and advance in the Senate, ultimately reaching President Donald Trump for signature.

Scott described Trump’s broader economic agenda as favorable to turning the U.S. into a global hub for crypto and financial innovation.

He added that reforming the market structure is essential to maintaining the U.S. economic position, arguing that regulatory clarity will play a decisive role in shaping the country’s long-term competitiveness in digital assets.