Coinbase says Senate negotiators have reached a deal on a disputed crypto bill provision tied to stablecoin rewards.
Summary
- Coinbase says negotiators reached a rewards compromise, easing a key delay for the CLARITY Act.
- Banks secured limits on deposit-like yield, while crypto firms kept activity-based user rewards under rules.
- The Senate markup path now depends on committee support, regulatory details, and wider political backing.
The agreement could help the CLARITY Act move toward a Senate markup after months of delay.
According to a Reuters report, the debate centered on whether crypto firms and stablecoin issuers should offer rewards to customers. Banks opposed the provision because they said yield-style rewards could pull deposits away from traditional lenders.
Crypto companies argued that they need room to reward users for real platform activity. Coinbase said the new language protects that ability while adding more limits around rewards that look like bank interest.
Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad said, “In the end, the banks were able to get more restrictions on rewards, but we protected what matters.” He added that crypto platforms kept the ability for Americans to earn rewards based on real usage of crypto platforms and networks.
Banks win limits on deposit-like yield
The compromise was negotiated by Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks, according to reports. The language would ban rewards offered in a way that is economically or functionally equal to interest or yield on a bank deposit.
That wording gives banks part of what they sought. It prevents crypto firms from offering rewards that closely mirror savings account interest, while leaving room for activity-based rewards.
The deal also asks regulators to create rules on stablecoin disclosures and define which reward activities remain allowed. That step may decide how exchanges, stablecoin issuers, and payment firms design reward programs.
CLARITY Act may return to markup
The agreement could clear a path for the CLARITY Act to move forward in the Senate. The bill aims to create clearer U.S. rules for digital assets and define how federal agencies oversee crypto markets.
Crypto.news reported that the Senate Banking Committee is targeting a markup during the week of May 11. The SEC has also scheduled a May roundtable tied to the CLARITY Act and digital asset market structure.
The roundtable follows earlier SEC and CFTC work on digital asset taxonomy. Crypto.news reported that the agencies had named 16 digital assets as commodities in a framework that the CLARITY Act could turn into federal law.
The rewards deal removes one barrier, but the bill still faces political tests. Some Democrats have raised concerns about crypto conflicts tied to the Trump family, while other lawmakers remain focused on law enforcement and consumer protection issues.