Coinbase's Armstrong Backs CLARITY Act as Senate Prepares Thursday Markup

On the eve of a Senate markup, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong posted on X that the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, known as CLARITY, has never been in a stronger or more bipartisan position. The Senate is set to take up the broader crypto market-structure legislation on Thursday, and Armstrong's endorsement puts one of the industry's most prominent voices firmly behind the latest draft.

His post pointed to a compromise on stablecoin yield, which he called healthy. According to Armstrong, it came out of negotiations that included Senators Thom Tillis and Alsobrooks. The deal appears to have given the bill momentum, though the reporting notes that some concerns about the road ahead remain, and the yield question is still a live point of contention for some participants.

The endorsement carries weight because of the bill's history. CLARITY stalled earlier this year after an initial draft drew pushback from industry players led by Coinbase, which argued that certain provisions created uncertainty or barriers for the market. Months of negotiation between the banking industry and crypto participants followed, and lawmakers pursued a revised version meant to address those core concerns while preserving congressional oversight of a fast-growing sector.

According to Armstrong, the current framework also reaches further than before in three areas: decentralized finance, tokenized stocks, and the authority of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to regulate crypto markets. On DeFi, the text is described as tightening oversight without choking permissionless innovation. On tokenized stocks, the language aims to clarify how tokenized versions of traditional assets would operate within an ownership and transfer framework regulators can supervise. Critics have warned about overreach, while proponents say clearer lines reduce legal ambiguity for market participants and issuers. The broader CFTC role is framed by advocates as a way to align crypto with existing commodity rules and encourage institutional participation, and by opponents as a risk to innovation.

Public opinion data offers some backdrop. A 2025 survey by the National Cryptocurrency Association, covering about 54,000 U.S. residents, put crypto ownership at roughly 20% of the population. About two-thirds of owners are under 45, and roughly 15% are over 55. Investing is the main reason people hold crypto: 52% cited it as a way to invest in their financial future.

On the legislation itself, a HarrisX poll conducted earlier this month found that about 52% of registered U.S. voters support passing the CLARITY Act, while 11% oppose it. The gap suggests a sizable share of voters may not yet have a firm view, though the source does not break that down.

For investors and builders, the practical stakes are clearer compliance pathways and potentially lower regulatory risk for companies that follow the rules. But the exact shape of DeFi governance, stablecoin oversight, and treatment of tokenized assets is still being argued, and the definitions around DeFi and tokenized assets are the remaining points of disagreement the reporting highlights.

Thursday's markup will show how much of the compromise survives. Watch whether the stablecoin yield and DeFi agreements hold against amendments, and whether tokenized asset treatment gets settled or falls back to the earlier sticking points.