Investment giant Fidelity is the latest big player to back the latest version of the long-awaited Clarity Act.
The Boston-based firm’s “Public Policy” account on X said Friday that it was urging the Senate to pass the bill.
Lawmakers have been hashing out the crypto market structure bill since last year. A new improved draft circulating the Senate this week bans officials and their families from issuing or promoting crypto — a sticking point for opposition politicians.
“The time is now for clear rules of the road that are essential to strengthening investor confidence, providing certainty for market participants, and reinforcing U.S. leadership in global digital asset markets,” the company said.
Fidelity — which manages around $7 trillion in assets — was joined Friday by crypto advocacy groups the Crypto Council for Innovation, Blockchain Association, and the Digital Chamber, as well as the National Fraternal Order of Police and other politicians in backing the bill.
Top asset manager Fidelity is interested in the bill as the firm manages Bitcoin and other digital asset exchange-traded funds: products which give American investors exposure to crypto via shares that trade on stock exchanges.
The SEC approved a number of spot BTC ETFs in 2024, which have since gone on to be some of the most successful ETF launches ever.
Clarity stalls
Republicans passed the Clarity Act last year but the bill has been in deadlock — mainly because banking chiefs raised concerns over stablecoins and the yield they would potentially pay customers.
Coinbase pulled support for the bill in January after clashing with banking bigwigs who said that earning yield on stablecoins should be banned.
U.S. banks argue that they could lose customers if crypto exchanges like Coinbase offer more attractive products for their deposit base.
Some lawmakers — like Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren — have argued that President Donald Trump’s family has unfairly benefited from crypto ventures.
Warren this week argued that the Clarity Act could further be used for Trump to cash in on crypto but the latest draft bans officials and their families from issuing or promoting crypto.
