Late-night Raid! The U.S. House of Representatives passes the CLARITY Act
In the early hours of July 18, Beijing time, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the long-awaited Digital Asset Market Clear Act, or CLARITY Act, with an overwhelming advantage of 294 votes in favor and 134 votes against. This vote can be called the "Crypto Version of Rashomon":
78 Democratic members "defected": Despite all 134 votes against within the party, 78 people still turned to support, setting a new record for bipartisan cooperation in recent years. Trump became the biggest variable: The bill was originally intended to prohibit the president from engaging in crypto business, but the Republican Party forcibly removed this clause, clearing obstacles for the Trump family's "World Free Finance" project.
How "harsh" is this bill
The First Strike: SEC and CFTC "Split"
The bill clearly defines for the first time:
Digital commodities such as Bitcoin and Ethereum fall under the CFTC’s jurisdiction, and spot trading does not need to look to the SEC; digital securities are still regulated by the SEC, but a "escape route" is provided: if the blockchain is decentralized enough, it can upgrade from "securities" to "commodities," directly escaping SEC regulation!
The Second Strike: DeFi Developers "Get Out of Jail Free Card"
Those who write code, run nodes, and create wallets do not need to register as long as they do not act as intermediaries! This means:
Decentralized protocols like Uniswap no longer have to worry about being labeled as "illegal exchanges"; traditional giants like the NYSE and Goldman Sachs, however, must obediently pay "protection fees" to the CFTC to enter the market.
The Third Strike: Wall Street's "Privilege Channel"
Traditional institutions registered with the SEC can directly engage in crypto business, while native crypto enterprises must face unfamiliar processes from the CFTC. The Democratic Party criticizes: "Is this regulation? Clearly, it’s a green light for Wall Street!"
Democratic Party Infighting! The Crypto Circle Celebrates
"This is a surrender to traditional finance!"
Democratic bigwig Waters angrily criticized during the hearing:
SEC representatives avoided key questions on the grounds of "confidentiality," accused of deliberately delaying legislation; crypto-native enterprises are forced to bear higher compliance costs, while traditional institutions can "seamlessly switch".
"The U.S. is finally going to become the blockchain leader!"
Coinbase CEO Armstrong tweeted overnight:
After the bill passes, the U.S. may reverse the trend of talent outflow; JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs have already planned to incorporate customer crypto assets into their credit assessment systems; the UAE sovereign fund MGX just invested $2 billion in Binance. If the U.S. does not act soon, it will lose the title of "Crypto Oasis" to the Middle East!
Global Game! China may become the biggest variable
While the U.S. crypto circle celebrated, China had already laid the groundwork:
The 2025 White Paper on Certain Issues Regarding China-U.S. Economic and Trade Relations clearly warns: If the U.S. continues to politicize economic and trade issues, China will undoubtedly retaliate; Internet-connected vehicle ban: The U.S. has banned Chinese drones and internet-connected vehicle hardware and software from entering the market, while China is accelerating the internationalization of the digital yuan;
Talent Battle: Tsinghua University, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and other institutions have established blockchain research centers. Will U.S. legislation attract top developers from China?
Senate Life-and-Death Battle!
Although the bill has passed the House, the Senate remains the "gates of hell":
The Senate controlled by the Democratic Party may demand an increase in the "Presidential Crypto Trading Ban"; the Republican Party threatens: "If you remove the Trump clause, we will let the bill rot in the Senate!"
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