President Donald Trump urged Congress on Wednesday to break its deadlock on the Clarity Act, the landmark bill that would define regulatory jurisdiction over digital assets, as his administration moved ahead with executive actions to bolster the cryptocurrency industry.
During a White House meeting with roughly two dozen crypto executives, Trump called on industry leaders to work with regulators to push the sector forward. Attendees included SEC Chair Paul Atkins, CFTC Chair Mike Selig, and the chief executives of Coinbase and Robinhood, along with Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, according to Yahoo Finance.
Clarity Act Stalled Over Ethics Provisions
The Clarity Act remains hung up in the Senate over disputed ethics language designed to prevent government officials from profiting off digital assets. A provision in the related GENIUS Act, which Trump signed into law in July 2025, bans members of Congress from profiting off stablecoins but notably excludes the president and his family. That carve-out has become a flashpoint as Trump’s personal crypto ventures have drawn scrutiny.
Trump told the gathering that the passage of crypto legislation “could be perhaps the greatest revolution in financial technology since the birth of the internet itself.” The remarks echoed his repeated pledge to make the United States the “crypto capital of the world.”
OCC Accelerates Stablecoin Rules
Separately, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced at the Wyoming Blockchain Summit that it plans to finalize federal rules for stablecoins by November, with the agency set to begin processing crypto bank license applications starting in January. Acting Comptroller Jonathan Gould said the OCC had received 40 applications for new bank charters over the past 18 months, with more than half involving digital asset activity – an eightfold increase from the prior administration.
The accelerated OCC timeline stems from the GENIUS Act, which established the first federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins – digital tokens pegged to the US dollar. The Treasury Department issued its own proposed rulemaking on August 17, seeking public comment on stablecoin issuance. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the rules would “cement the role of the US dollar as the world’s reserve currency.”
The OCC also proposed preventing stablecoin companies from using loopholes to pay interest to their users, a provision that could be favorable to traditional banks entering the space. Bitcoin surged past $75,000 this week, boosted by optimism around the regulatory push, while broader crypto markets rallied on the prospect of clearer rules.
The deadlock in Congress leaves the executive branch as the primary vehicle for crypto policy, with regulators at the SEC, CFTC, and OCC all advancing their own frameworks. Industry leaders have expressed frustration that comprehensive market-structure legislation remains elusive even as the administration signals strong support for the sector.
Sources: Yahoo Finance; Treasury Department; Congress.gov; The Block
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