H.R. 3633

Digital Asset Market Clarity Act

Sponsor: J. French Hill

21 cosponsors
Follow this bill

Official summary

Written by the Congressional Research Service.

Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025 or the CLARITY Act of 2025

This bill establishes a regulatory framework for digital commodities, defined by the bill as digital assets that rely upon a blockchain for their value.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission must generally regulate digital commodities transactions, including digital commodity exchanges, brokers, and dealers. To qualify for trade on an exchange (1) a digital commodity’s blockchain must be mature, or on a blockchain system that has achieved decentralized control as defined by the bill; or (2) the issuer of the digital commodity must file certain reports. The bill establishes requirements for trade monitoring, recordkeeping, and the commingling of customer assets.  

The bill exempts digital commodities on mature blockchains (and digital commodities on blockchains expected to mature within certain timeframes) from Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) registration requirements if annual sales fall under a certain amount and other requirements are met. The bill provides the SEC with jurisdiction over digital commodity activities and transactions engaged in by certain brokers and dealers on alternative trading systems and by national securities exchanges. 

Digital commodity exchanges, brokers, and dealers are subject to the Bank Secrecy Act for anti-money laundering and related purposes.

The bill also sets forth requirements for alternative trading systems, previously issued digital commodities, and provisional registration until the bill is implemented.  

For more information on this bill, see CRS Insight IN12583, Crypto Legislation: An Overview of H.R. 3633, the CLARITY Act.

Text of the bill

Expand all

I Definitions; Rulemaking; Expedited Registration

II Offers and Sales of Digital Commodities

III Registration for Intermediaries at the Securities and Exchange Commission

IV Registration for Digital Commodity Intermediaries at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission

V Innovation and Technology Improvements

VI Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act

I Responsible securities innovation

II Protecting against illicit finance

III Responsible innovation in decentralized finance

Sec. 306. Voluntary cybersecurity program for decentralized finance trading protocols Added Jun 1

Where this section came from

Not in the first version (Introduced in House, May 29).

  1. Jun 1, 2026 · Reported to Senate Marked up by Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, May 14 Reported by Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Jun 1 Committee members' individual votes aren't in our records.
What is a markup?

A markup is a committee meeting where members go through a bill and vote on changes before sending it to the full chamber.

(a) Definitions. In this section:

(1) Covered activities. The term covered activities means the activities described in section 15H(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as added by section 601.

(2) Decentralized finance trading protocol. The term decentralized finance trading protocol has the meaning given the term in section 15H(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as added by section 601.

(3) Director. The term Director means the Director of NIST.

(4) NIST. The term NIST means the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

(b) Establishment of program. The Director shall, in consultation with the Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, establish a voluntary program for the adoption by persons developing decentralized finance trading protocols or engaging in covered activities of applicable cybersecurity standards published by NIST.

(c) Development of program criteria

(1) Request for information. The Director shall issue a request for information in the Federal Register to gather input from experts and industry stakeholders on—

(A) cybersecurity threats, vulnerabilities, and risks to decentralized finance trading protocols;

(B) auditing and code security standards, including best practices for code audits;

(C) consumer protection and code transparency best practices on decentralized finance trading protocols; and

(D) existing NIST standards, as of the day before the date of enactment of this Act, and their applicability to decentralized finance trading protocols.

(2) Report. The Director shall develop a report on the software development of decentralized finance protocols to assess technical input from paragraph (1).

(3) Publication of program criteria. After evaluating input provided under paragraph (1), the Director shall release a special publication containing a detailed evaluation of cybersecurity best practices and existing applicable standards, as of the day before the date of enactment of this Act, for decentralized finance trading protocols, to provide program criteria to software developers and industry stakeholders under the voluntary program, which shall include a summary of public comments and responses as to how input was incorporated.

(4) Requests for revision

(A) In general. After the Director publishes the program criteria under paragraph (3), the Director shall issue a request for comment in the Federal Register to gather input on the workability of the program.

(B) Petition. The public may petition the Director to reevaluate certain aspects of the program criteria published under paragraph (3).

(5) Program updates. As the technology underpinning decentralized finance trading protocols evolves, the Director shall update the special publication under paragraph (3) in compliance with subsection (d).

(d) Program

(1) Application. A person seeking evaluation of a decentralized finance trading protocol or a covered activity under the program established under subsection (b) shall submit to the Director an application at such time and in such manner as the Director considers appropriate for purposes of the program.

(2) Review. In carrying out the program established under subsection (b), the Director shall review each application submitted by a person under paragraph (1) of this subsection.

(3) Determination. In carrying out a review under paragraph (2) of an application regarding a decentralized finance trading protocol or covered activity, the Director shall determine whether the protocol or activity is in compliance with existing applicable standards, frameworks, and guidelines published by the Director under subsection (c).

(4) Notice. For each determination made under paragraph (3) pursuant to an application by a person of a decentralized finance trading protocol or covered activity, the Director shall transmit to the person a notice of the determination.

(e) Benefits of program

(1) Display. A person that receives notice under subsection (d)(4) that the Director has determined that a decentralized finance trading protocol or a covered activity has adopted the applicable cybersecurity standards published by NIST, the person may publicly display a designation, seal, or other identifier issued by the Director.

(2) Treatment of adoption. In adopting a regulation or guidance relating to this section, a Federal agency shall consider adoption of cybersecurity standards under the program required by subsection (b) as evidence of good faith compliance with the law.

(f) Rule of construction relating to preemption. Nothing in this section may be construed to preempt any otherwise applicable provision of law of a State.

IV Responsible banking innovation

V Responsible regulatory innovation

VI Protecting software developers and software innovation

VII Protecting customer property

VIII Customer protection

IX Other matters