Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong called for Senate passage of the CLARITY Act, saying most banks now view crypto as an opportunity rather than a threat. The US Senate has scheduled a cloture vote on the measure for September 15, 2026, two weeks away.
Armstrong's renewed push comes as the bill faces its decisive test in the upper chamber. A successful cloture vote would allow the Senate to move to a final passage vote, where a simple majority would be required to advance the legislation to the House.
The CLARITY Act, formally the Crypto Law Enforcement and Regulatory Clarity Act, would establish federal regulatory jurisdiction over digital assets and stablecoins, creating a unified framework that supporters argue reduces compliance uncertainty for financial institutions. The bill has drawn backing from major crypto exchanges and banking groups that have called for clear rules at the federal level rather than a patchwork of state regulations.
Armstrong said in a post on X that the legislation delivers "clear rules." Financial institutions have come to accept digital assets as something other than a regulatory problem.
The bill's path to the Senate floor marks a turning point after months of negotiation among sponsoring senators and stakeholder groups. Passage through cloture would require 60 votes, a threshold the bill's sponsors have said they believe they can achieve.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed for cloture on the measure in early September, setting the date for the procedural vote. If cloture succeeds, senators would then vote on final passage, where the bill would need 51 votes to advance to the House.
The timeline compresses the vote into a narrow window before the Senate turns to other legislative priorities. A failed cloture vote would effectively stall the bill for the remainder of the session, barring a last-minute change in Senate scheduling. Armstrong's public support, combined with backing from financial institutions and digital asset companies, shows the coalition pushing for Senate action before the window closes.
