US Senate Delays Crypto Market Structure Bill Until 2026

The US Senate has delayed the long-awaited Crypto Market Structure Bill, pushing final consideration into early 2026. Lawmakers ran out of legislative time as internal disputes stalled consensus on key provisions.

The delay prolongs regulatory uncertainty for crypto exchanges, issuers, and institutional investors operating in the US.

Why the Crypto Market Structure Bill Was Delayed

The bill, built on the House-passed Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act, aims to define how digital assets are regulated. It would formally split oversight between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

However, unresolved disagreements over jurisdiction, DeFi oversight, and consumer protections slowed progress.

🚨NEW: In a statement, a Senate Banking Committee spokesperson confirmed my reporting from this AM that @BankingGOP will not hold a market structure markup this year: “Chairman Scott and the Senate Banking Committee have made strong progress with Democratic counterparts on… pic.twitter.com/op5rIyMn3d

— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) December 15, 2025

Senate negotiators struggled to reconcile differences between the Banking and Agriculture committees. These committees oversee the SEC and CFTC respectively, and both claim authority over crypto spot markets.

As a result, lawmakers could not finalize language that both sides supported before the session ended.

DeFi regulation also emerged as a major sticking point. Some senators pushed for exemptions for decentralized protocols with no controlling intermediary.

Others warned that broad exemptions could weaken enforcement and create regulatory gaps.

Consumer advocacy groups added pressure by opposing parts of the bill. They argue the framework shifts power away from the SEC and risks weakening investor protections after several high-profile crypto failures.

This opposition prompted further revisions and slowed negotiations.

Despite the delay, the bill differs sharply from other crypto legislation already passed. Unlike the GENIUS Act, which focuses narrowly on stablecoins, the market structure bill targets the entire crypto trading ecosystem.

It sets rules for exchanges, brokers, custody providers, and token issuers under a unified federal framework.

The bill also goes further than enforcement-led regulation. It introduces formal asset classification standards and limits reliance on court rulings to define whether tokens are securities or commodities.

Lawmakers say this approach would replace regulatory uncertainty with statutory clarity.