Crypto’s DC Blowup Leaves Banks, Issuers and Exchanges Looking to SEC

Crypto markets lost their big Washington vote Tuesday (Sept. 15). But the more important fight may be the one that finally came out into the open.

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act had been billed as the long-awaited rulebook that could pull cryptocurrency deeper into the regulated U.S. financial system. Its failure to advance, with the procedural vote falling short, sent crypto stocks tumbling and left the industry staring at yet another stretch of operating domestically without comprehensive federal market structure legislation.

And that stretch of uncertainty may not result in any clarity any time soon. On Wednesday (Sept. 16), House Speaker Mike Johnson announced that Thursday’s House votes were cancelled and that lawmakers would likely go on recess starting Wednesday night, returning to Washington only after the November midterm elections.

Since returning from the August recess, lawmakers have been at work for just seven days. The early lawmaker exit comes after more than 100 Democratic representatives called for Speaker Johnson to cancel the recess entirely in order to address what they said is a growing threat from artificial intelligence. By ending its session a day early, the House will also avoid a vote on a resolution introduced by Republican congressman Thomas Massie to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.