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Coinbase Vice Chair Ryan VanGrack said Democratic senators have secured customer-protection provisions in negotiations over the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act.
VanGrack said Democrats strengthened the Senate bill but did not specify which provisions had been revised. Lawmakers had not released updated bill text or scheduled a floor vote as of July 20.
Revised Safeguards Have Not Yet Been Published
The lack of published language means the reported Democratic additions cannot yet be separated from protections already included in the Senate Banking Committee’s May version.
That version requires educational materials explaining digital asset risks, reporting duties, and fraud warnings.
It also calls for financial literacy measures, timely project disclosures, restrictions on token resales, and preservation of federal anti-fraud authority.
May Bill Already Protects Custody and Bankruptcy Claims
Registered crypto intermediaries would have to segregate customer assets under the May Senate Banking text. Customer digital commodities would also be treated as customer property rather than unsecured claims during bankruptcy.
Brokers, dealers, and exchanges would face Bank Secrecy Act duties covering customer identification, transaction monitoring and suspicious activity reports.
VanGrack’s comments indicate that Democrats negotiated further changes after the May markup. The public record does not yet show whether those additions affect custody, disclosures, fraud reimbursement or another area.
Crypto Kiosk Rules Require Warnings and Withdrawal Limits
The bill requires digital asset kiosk operators to register and maintain anti-fraud controls. Safeguards include transaction warnings, receipts, holding periods, withdrawal limits, risk monitoring,, and designated compliance officers.
The bill also allows regulated crypto providers to pause suspicious transactions at law enforcement’s request. Treasury would receive authority to target foreign jurisdictions, institutions, or transaction types linked to primary money-laundering concerns involving digital assets.
Senate Advanced CLARITY 15-9 Amid Ethics Dispute
The Senate Banking Committee advanced CLARITY by a 15-9 vote on May 14. Two Democrats joined Republicans, while Democratic senators continued pressing for ethics provisions covering senior government officials’ crypto ownership and promotion.
Those ethics amendments were rejected during the committee process. The Senate text must also be aligned with Agriculture Committee legislation and the House-passed bill before it can become law.
Revised Senate Text Remains the Next Confirmed Step
The next confirmed step is publication of the revised Senate text. Until then, VanGrack’s statement is the only public description of the latest customer-protection concessions.
The exact scope of the Democratic additions remains unverified until lawmakers release the updated bill language.
