TL;DR
-
Bank lobbying groups issued a joint statement Monday calling the stablecoin rewards compromise "insufficient"
-
The White House has already moved on — Patrick Witt called the rewards issue "closed" at Consensus in Miami
-
A Senate Banking Committee markup is targeted for next week, with Tillis aiming to get the bill to President Trump before July 4th
-
Polymarket odds for the CLARITY Act passing in 2026 are up from around 40% to 65%
Although issues in the CLARITY Act are still contested it is moving forward. Bank lobbying groups still aren’t happy with the wording regarding stablecoin rewards. Just this Monday, they published a joint statement calling the compromise “insufficient”. This is the banking lobby’s final attempt to put pressure on legislators.
However, the White House seems to have moved on already. A markup with the Senate Banking Committee has been targeted for next week but has yet to be scheduled. Senator Tillis calls the target a “forcing mechanism” and that they’re aiming to have the new bill in front of President Trump before July 4th.
Banks Call Compromise “Insufficient”
The statement issued by the bank lobbying groups said:
Senators Tillis and Alsobrooks are seeking to achieve the correct policy goal – prohibiting the payment of yield and interest on stablecoins; however, the proposed language falls short of that goal.
However, yields have already been addressed by the GENIUS Act and outright bans stable coin issuers to offer yield. The language is trying to make it seem as if the allowed rewards structure that’s proposed in the act is in fact yield.
At Consensus in Miami yesterday, Patrick Witt, executive director of the President's Council of Advisors for Digital Assets, described the rewards issue as closed. Polymarket odds for the act passing in 2026 are now up from around a 40% to a 65% chance.
What's Left to Fight Over
So, even with the rewards issue being “closed”, there are a few issues remaining. There’s the ethics provision, which would restrict senior officials’ crypto investments. Witt actually addressed this issue as well on stage in Miami, saying the White House would accept rules that are applied across the board.
However, the Democratic stance seems to be targeting Trump specifically. Unless they come to an agreement here, there will be no Democratic vote. The language of the ethics provision is not nailed down yet, it’s set to be added by the Senate after the markup.
Secondly, there’s the part about DeFi developers and whether they should be considered money transmitters and therefore liable for what users of their platforms do.
Lastly, Senator John Kennedy is still holding out his vote. The Louisiana senator is using his vote as leverage over a stalled Senate housing bill.
Bottom Line
So, the banking lobby issued a joint statement against the current stablecoin rewards language this Monday. However, events this week show their efforts may be too late. Patrick Witt called the matter closed.
There are still question marks though. Will Senator John Kennedy support the bill? Is the protection for DeFi developers too strong? And after the markup, can the Senate agree on the language of an ethics provision that doesn’t target the White House and President Trump individually?
