Clarity Act markup leaves bitcoin unstirred
Your day-ahead look for May 14, 2026
What to know:
- The Senate is set to mark up the U.S. Clarity Act, a sweeping digital-asset bill that would ban interest on stablecoin balances, impose penalties up to $5 million and add the Treasury as a key rule-making authority alongside the SEC and CFTC.
- Despite the bill’s high stakes and more than 100 proposed amendments, bitcoin options markets show historically low implied volatility and little pricing of event risk.
- Technical signals suggest bitcoin’s latest recovery has ended after breaking an April uptrend line near the 200-day moving average, raising the risk of momentum-driven selling toward $75,000.
The proposed bill aims to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets. The latest draft, released on May 11, includes several key provisions, including a ban on interest on stablecoin balances and a $5 million penalty for violations. It also adds the Treasury as a rule-making authority alongside the SEC and CFTC.
There is still no ethics language preventing government officials from issuing tokens, though observers expect it may be introduced during markup, when a Congressional committee will review, debate and amend the wording line by line.
“As the framework moves toward passage, BTC’s case as a strategic allocation with unique diversification benefits in a balanced portfolio only strengthens,” said Can-Luca Köymen, an investment strategist at Sygnum Bank.
Not everyone is happy with the current wording.
Over 100 Substack amendments were submitted ahead of a Wednesday deadline, including one proposing a ban on Federal Reserve master accounts for crypto companies.
