US stablecoin bill nears key Senate markup

TLDR

A US digital asset bill that includes a federal stablecoin framework is moving toward a key Senate Banking Committee markup but still faces significant political and industry hurdles.

1. The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act has cleared the House and one Senate committee, and a Banking Committee markup is now being prepared after a bipartisan stablecoin compromise.
2. The compromise would ban bank?like interest on passive stablecoin balances while allowing activity?based rewards, winning support from crypto firms but drawing strong opposition from major US banks.
3. The next few weeks matter, as midterm politics and banking lobby pushback could delay or derail the bill, leaving stablecoin rules in regulatory limbo.

Deep Dive

1. Where The Bill Stands Now

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which includes a national framework for stablecoins, passed the US House in 2025 and has already gone through a Senate Agriculture Committee markup.

Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks have now brokered a compromise that allows the Senate Banking Committee to prepare a markup later in May, turning the bill into a realistic candidate for the first comprehensive US crypto market structure law.

Industry figures like Coinbases Paul Grewal describe this as hard?won progress, while Ripples Brad Garlinghouse warns that if the Banking Committee does not act in the next couple of weeks, the odds of passage before the 2026 midterms drop sharply.

2. What The Stablecoin Rules Look Like

The latest draft stablecoin language would prohibit economically or functionally equivalent interest on passive stablecoin holdings, while allowing rewards tied to usage, such as payments or trading activity, according to recent reporting on the compromise.

The bill would also require 1?to?1 reserves in high quality liquid assets, exclude algorithmic designs from stablecoin status, and make the Federal Reserve the primary overseer of non?bank issuers, as described in one detailed summary of the compromise.

Crypto firms like Circle and Coinbase have endorsed this structure, but major banking trade groups argue the yield language still allows deposit?like incentives and warn of potential deposit flight, pressing senators to tighten the text.

3. Why It Matters For Stablecoin Users

For users of centralized dollar stablecoins such as USDC and similar products, this bill could eventually make US?issued payment tokens feel more like regulated financial infrastructure, with clear reserve, disclosure, and oversight rules.

At the same time, stricter limits on passive yield would push most interest?style returns into either bank products or on chain activity programs defined tightly by regulators, which may narrow some current yield offerings if the bill passes.

Conclusion

The move toward a Senate markup signals the closest the US has come to a federal stablecoin rulebook, but the combination of bank resistance and an approaching election window keeps the outcome uncertain. Crypto users should treat this as a potential regime shift for centralized dollar stablecoins, watching whether the Banking Committee actually schedules and completes its markup before the political calendar takes over.