Coinbase Throws Spanner in Senate’s Stablecoin Soiree

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What ho, old bean! Coinbase, that bastion of crypto chappism, has chucked a rather large spanner into the Senate’s stablecoin shindig, leaving the whole affair in a bit of a pickle. Jolly bad show, what?

  • Coinbase, with a stiff upper lip, has given the Senate’s revised language the old heave-ho, fearing it might put the kibosh on their stablecoin rewards.
  • Banking sorts, clutching their ledgers like worried aunts, wail that stablecoin rewards will lure deposits away from their hallowed halls.
  • Meanwhile, lawmakers and White House chaps continue their endless chinwag, as the clock ticks ever louder.

On the 26th of March, no less, Coinbase chaps reportedly told Senate types they couldn’t stomach the new guff about yield payments. Stablecoin rewards, it seems, are the bee in everyone’s bonnet.

Punchbowl News, those intrepid scribblers, spilled the beans that Coinbase’s top dogs met with Senate worthies on Monday, giving the revised draft a thorough drubbing. Their beef? Language that might stop third parties, including exchanges, from doling out rewards on stablecoin balances. Dash it all, that’s their bread and butter!

And why all the fuss? Well, stablecoin rewards are the cat’s whiskers for crypto platforms. But banking chaps, with their noses out of joint, reckon these rewards will poach deposits and leave the GENIUS Act looking rather silly.

Banks and Crypto Firms: A Tale of Two Rulebooks

Senators Tillis and Alsobrooks, bless their cotton socks, have been leading the charge on this compromise. Alsobrooks, ever the pragmatist, quipped that lawmakers shouldn’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good, and that both crypto firms and banks might end up a tad miffed. Can’t please ’em all, eh?

The White House, not to be outdone, has been playing peacemaker. Reuters had it that the administration planned a series of jolly meetings with banking and crypto types, with at least one more chinwag in February. Still, no cigar yet.

This latest kerfuffle comes hot on the heels of a January setback. Reuters reported that the Senate Banking Committee hit the pause button after Coinbase withdrew support, objecting to earlier draft language on stablecoin rewards. Bit of a debacle, that.

Lawmakers are now in a bit of a time crunch, even though the House got its act together first. The CLARITY Act passed the House on July 17, 2025, and the Senate must now sort out its own version before anything can move forward. Tick-tock, chaps!

Lummis and Witt: Keeping the Faith

Senator Lummis, taking to X (formerly known as Twitter, don’t you know), declared that “bipartisan compromise is necessary” for the CLARITY Act to cross the finish line. She’s keen to protect stablecoin rewards while keeping community banks from losing their shirts.

White House digital assets adviser Patrick Witt, meanwhile, tried to soothe ruffled feathers. He dismissed the “uninformed FUD” floating about, a clear sign that talks are still afoot, even as Coinbase keeps up its campaign.

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2026-03-26 13:06