The proposed Digital Asset Market Clarity Act would establish a comprehensive, top-down regulatory framework for digital assets that reflects a growing bipartisan push in Congress for clear oversight of the digital asset industry. On Nov. 9, 2025, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, led by Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), released a bipartisan discussion draft amending a version of the Clarity Act passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in summer 2025. Both the Senate and House bills codify that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is the primary regulator for non-security digital assets.
Key Takeaways
There are several important components to the committee’s discussion draft, including:
- Granting the CFTC expansive new authority over digital assets.
- Creating a comprehensive new regulatory structure for digital asset intermediaries under the Commodity Exchange Act.
- Implementing consumer protections such as customer fund segregation requirements, conflict of interest safeguards and customer disclosure requirements.
- Creating CFTC authority to collect fees to recover annual costs for its new oversight activities and authorizing $150 million for implementation until fees are collected.
- Requiring the CFTC to be “appropriately staffed” and “fully constituted” with at least two nominated commissioners (currently, the CFTC has a single commissioner).
- Excluding certain stablecoins from the CEA’s jurisdiction.
What’s Next?
The Senate Agriculture Committee is expected to collect industry and public feedback on its discussion draft and hold hearings prior to releasing a formal markup in early 2026. Although the legislative process is still ongoing, market participants can expect a final bill that will retain most if not all of the core principles outlined in the current drafts. As a result, companies in the digital asset and fintech ecosystem that are currently developing product lines and trading venues may want to consider these principles in their design processes in order to reduce compliance frictions when the bill is finalized and the CFTC begins its rulemaking process.
This post is based on the Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP memorandum, “Clarity Act Coming Into Focus,” dated November 17, 2025, and available here.