The Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 on Thursday to advance the Clarity Act, a broad bill aimed at setting a federal regulatory framework for the crypto industry. The measure still must pass the full Senate and the House before it could reach President Donald Trump, as banks, labor unions and law-enforcement groups argue parts of the proposal could raise consumer and financial-stability risks.

The Senate Banking Committee advanced the Clarity Act on May 14, 2026, approving it 15-9 with Democratic support from Senators Ruben Gallego and Alsobrooks. The bill sets clearer jurisdictional lines between the SEC and CFTC and would restrict stablecoin yield for passive holding while allowing activity-based rewards. Next, it heads to the full Senate, where it must clear a 60-vote cloture hurdle to proceed.

Moody's Ratings granted its highest Aaa-mf grade to BlackRock's USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) on or around May 13, 2026. The Ethereum-based, tokenized money-market product manages about $2.58 billion and targets a $1 NAV while distributing daily yield to investor wallets. The rating places BUIDL alongside the safest traditional money-market instruments and follows a similar top rating for Fidelity's FILQ fund.

On May 14, 2026, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee held a key vote on the Clarity Act as Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong framed the bill as a major chance to advance the U.S. financial system. He argued the legislation would reduce legal friction for banks and crypto firms working together, amid growing use of stablecoins and tokenized funds. The debate comes as U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a local $635 million retail outflow while corporations accumulated 46,872 BTC in April.

Fidelity introduced the Fidelity USD Digital Liquidity Fund (FILQ), an on-chain yield product built on Syngnum Bank's tokenization infrastructure with Chainlink handling its on-chain data. The fund carries a Moody's AAA rating and targets 24/7, instantly redeemable cash management for on-chain firms seeking interest-bearing liquidity.

AARP told senators to retain Section 205 of the CLARITY Act ahead of the Senate Banking Committee's May 14 markup, arguing it would strengthen safeguards around cryptocurrency kiosks. The group pointed to more than 13,460 complaints and over $389 million in reported losses tied to kiosk-related fraud, while calling for federal registration that still leaves states room to set their own protections.

On May 13, 2026, the CFTC's Division of Market Oversight and Division of Clearing and Risk said they would not recommend enforcement when certain prediction-market participants do not report event-contract transaction data to swap data repositories or meet related recordkeeping duties. The relief applies to fully collateralized event contracts and covers designated contract markets (DCMs), derivatives clearing organizations (DCOs), and their participants. Firms seeking the same treatment going forward can ask to be added to an appendix to the letter, while entities outside the stated terms are not automatically covered.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said on May 13 that the U.S. is closer than ever to reaching a key milestone on crypto regulation, pointing to a Senate Banking Committee markup that is scheduled for May 14. He made the comments during a Binance online event alongside Binance co-CEO Richard Teng and Solana Foundation president Lily Liu. Garlinghouse added he is optimistic about the outlook, citing prediction-market odds suggesting roughly 67%–75% for the bill's passage by year-end.