Key Supporters, Including Coinbase, Experience Setback as Senate Banking Committee Cancels Hearing on "CLARITY Act" Amendment

BlockBeats News, January 15th, the Senate Banking Committee has canceled a scheduled hearing to amend and vote on comprehensive cryptocurrency legislation, following Coinbase's announcement that it is withdrawing support for the bill. It is currently unclear when the hearing will take place.

The Senate Banking Committee was originally set to hold a markup hearing on Thursday morning. The bill aims to clarify regulatory jurisdiction between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission, define when digital assets should be classified as securities or commodities, and establish new disclosure requirements.

The text of the bill was released on Monday evening, with the deadline for amendments being late Tuesday night, paving the way for a vote on Thursday. However, cracks in the supporting coalition began to appear on Wednesday.

Key negotiator of the bill, Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego, revealed to reporters that he was supposed to meet with the President's Digital Asset Advisory Committee Executive Director Patrick Witt, but Witt did not show up. He stated that he is currently unable to support the bill.

Subsequently, Coinbase announced the withdrawal of its support. The company's CEO Brian Armstrong pointed out in a post on X platform that there are concerns about the provisions in the bill regarding stablecoin earnings, tokenized equities, and decentralized finance. However, other crypto companies and advocacy organizations still expressed support for the bill, stating that they will continue to push for the bill to become law in 2026.