CLARITY Act Crypto Regulation Faces Bank Obstruction Claims

Senator Cynthia Lummis has accused banks of trying to sabotage one of the most consequential efforts at crypto regulation in years, claiming financial institutions are quietly demanding last-minute changes to the CLARITY Act before they will back it. The accusation lands at a delicate moment: the bill, formally known as the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, already stalled once this summer when the Senate broke for recess without a vote, and lawmakers are now eyeing a fresh attempt on September 15. For anyone watching how CLARITY Act crypto regulation takes shape in Washington, the fight over banks’ demands could decide whether digital assets finally get a clear legal rulebook or spend another year in limbo.

Senator Lummis Accuses Banks of Obstructing CLARITY Act Progress

Lummis says banks are not simply raising technical concerns. According to her, they are using their leverage to demand changes to the bill’s text as a precondition for support, a tactic she frames as deliberate obstruction rather than good-faith negotiation. That framing matters because the CLARITY Act needs broad backing to clear procedural hurdles in the Senate, and any bloc capable of withholding votes has real power to reshape or delay the legislation.