TLDR
- Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz says the CLARITY Act will likely pass in May, with Trump signing it in June
- Memorial Day (May 25) is seen as a “drop-dead” deadline for the bill to advance
- The Senate Banking Committee did not schedule a markup hearing as expected, disappointing the industry
- Galaxy Digital’s research head puts the odds of passage in 2026 at just 50%
- Over 100 crypto firms signed an open letter urging the Senate Banking Committee to hold a markup hearing
The U.S. crypto industry is watching the calendar closely as the CLARITY Act faces a shrinking window to become law. The bill, which aims to give the crypto market a permanent legal framework, has stalled in the Senate despite passing the House in July 2025 with bipartisan support.
Mike Novogratz: U.S. CLARITY Act Could Advance in May
Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz said the U.S. CLARITY Act will likely be finalized in May and could be signed into law by June, providing clearer regulatory frameworks for the crypto industry and opening access to global… pic.twitter.com/2rFZ6vTX1C
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) April 26, 2026
Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz told SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci on a podcast that he expects the bill to move to committee in the first week of May. He predicted President Trump would sign it into law in June.
“So this is going to get done. It probably gets done in May,” Novogratz said.
He framed the bill as more than a domestic issue. Novogratz said the legislation could open U.S. financial products to roughly 5.5 billion people worldwide who currently have no access to them.
“This phone with a crypto wallet is going to be the way the kid in Bhutan or Batswana or Bolivia or Paraguay is participating in the American economy,” he said.
More than 100 crypto companies signed an open letter last week pushing the Senate Banking Committee to schedule a markup hearing. That hearing would be the first formal step toward a full Senate vote.
But the committee did not schedule that hearing by Friday, as many in the industry had expected.
Racing Against the Clock
Memorial Day, on May 25, has been viewed since at least December as the last realistic checkpoint for the bill. After that, lawmakers are expected to leave Washington to campaign ahead of elections, leaving little time for legislative action.
The Senate still has competing priorities. It needs to confirm whether Kevin Warsh will become the next Federal Reserve chair. The House, meanwhile, is focused on a Department of Homeland Security funding bill.
Senator Cynthia Lummis warned on April 10 that the stakes could not be higher.
“This is our last chance to pass the Clarity Act until at least 2030. We can’t afford to surrender America’s financial future,” she posted on X.
Key Sticking Points Remain
One major dispute has been whether stablecoin yields would hurt banks’ ability to compete. That issue, along with questions around sales practices for stablecoins and decentralized finance rules, has slowed Senate progress.
Congressman French Hill, who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, said many of those issues were already resolved in the House version of the bill.
Not everyone shares Novogratz’s optimism. Galaxy Digital’s head of research Alex Thorn put the current odds of the bill passing in 2026 at 50%.
“If markup slips past mid-May, odds will drop sharply,” Thorn said.
Without legislation, rules set by the Securities and Exchange Commission remain temporary and could be reversed by a future administration.
The Senate Banking Committee has not yet announced a markup hearing date.
