Giancarlo says crypto can outlast CLARITY delays

• Former CFTC chair Chris Giancarlo says crypto innovation will continue even if the US CLARITY Act fails to pass.
• The bill has remained without a Senate floor vote after advancing from committee by 15-9 in May.
• Giancarlo still supports the legislation, saying it could bring regulatory order without determining whether crypto development continues.

Former Commodity Futures Trading Commission chair Chris Giancarlo said US crypto innovation will continue regardless of whether the CLARITY Act becomes law.

The House passed H.R. 3633 by 294-134 in July 2025, while the Senate Banking Committee advanced its version 15-9 in May 2026 without a subsequent floor vote.

“Now, what I’d say to the industry is perhaps it’s time to stop making such a big deal out of CLARITY,” Giancarlo said.

Giancarlo compared blockchain development with the internet, arguing that technological adoption can continue without Congress first establishing a dedicated statutory framework.

He nevertheless supports the bill, saying CLARITY could provide greater regulatory order while warning the industry to prepare for the possibility that it does not pass.

The legislation would also codify LabCFTC, the financial technology initiative Giancarlo established while serving as acting CFTC chairman in 2017.

Giancarlo also raised privacy concerns over provisions applying Bank Secrecy Act requirements to digital asset transactions, while maintaining that regulatory action will continue even without CLARITY.