Ripple's chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty said a September 15 Senate cloture vote will determine whether the Clarity Act advances, warning the U.S. could "miss an incredible opportunity" if the bill fails to pass.
The Clarity Act, which would establish a regulatory framework distinguishing crypto assets from securities, faces its first procedural test when the Senate votes on whether to advance the measure to a final vote. Senate Majority Leader John Thune locked in the September 15 date after the chamber opened initial voting on the bill in early August. The legislation has drawn support from major crypto firms including Ripple, Coinbase and MicroStrategy, all of which view passage as essential to establishing clearer rules for digital asset trading and custody.
Alderoty called the vote a "bellwether" for the industry. A successful cloture vote would allow the Senate to proceed to a final passage vote; failure would effectively kill the bill in the current session. The Clarity Act proposes to carve out digital assets from the Securities Act and give the Commodity Futures Trading Commission primary regulatory authority over spot crypto markets while the SEC would oversee derivatives. Industry participants argue the current legal ambiguity forces U.S.-based projects and firms to either operate in gray zones or relocate overseas.
Ripple has been among the most aggressive lobbyists for crypto legislation in Washington. The company has spent the past four years fighting the SEC's enforcement action claiming XRP sales constituted unregistered securities offerings. A federal court partially sided with Ripple in 2023, but the SEC's appeal remains pending. Passage of the Clarity Act would effectively rewrite the legal test the SEC applied to XRP and other tokens sold on secondary markets, moving away from the Howey framework the regulator has relied on.
The bill has faced resistance from financial regulators and some consumer protection advocates who argue it waters down oversight of retail crypto exposure. The Banking Committee and other panels have held hearings but stopped short of moving a companion version. Senate floor time remains scarce as the calendar tightens toward year-end, making mid-September the practical last chance for crypto legislation in 2026.
If the cloture vote fails, the legal framework governing crypto assets would remain unchanged through at least the 2026 election cycle, extending the regulatory uncertainty that has defined the sector for five years. If cloture passes, final passage is considered likely given the bipartisan support the bill has accumulated in the Senate.
The document to watch is the final cloture vote tally on September 15, which will show whether Thune can hold enough Republicans and recruit sufficient Democratic support to move the bill to a final vote.
