Crypto’s Last Calm? Congress to Unleash Chaos!

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Ah, the tranquil interlude before the tempest of regulatory fervor descends upon the crypto realm. According to Ron Hammond, Head of Policy and Advocacy at Wintermute, this week may be the final “quiet week” before Congress returns with a schedule as packed as a Victorian parlor’s tea tray. 🍵🌪️

Congress Returns With Heavy Agenda

After a month-long hiatus, the Congress returns, armed with a schedule as packed as a Victorian parlor’s tea tray, ready to dissect the digital asset industry. The Senate, ever the procrastinator, drafts its own market structure bill, while the House, with the diligence of a man who’s lost his hat, already passed the Clarity Act. 🧢⚖️

A first draft is expected by mid-to-late September. Hammond notes that while a shutdown could delay progress, momentum is strong, and key committees are preparing to review the bill in the fall. One can only hope the chaos is as entertaining as a Dickensian farce. 🎭

Market Structure Bill: What to Expect

The House, ever the diligent scribe, has been drafting market structure for eight years, while the Senate, with all the urgency of a man chasing a lost umbrella, only began hearings this year. Hammond explains that senators want more ownership of the process and may revise definitions around ancillary assets and decentralization tests. A spectacle of bureaucratic grandeur, no doubt. ☔📜

If progress continues, a Senate vote could happen in late October or early November, with the possibility of the House taking it up before Christmas. That means the bill could either be passed by year-end or pushed into 2026. A triumph of legislative inertia! 🕰️

TradFi vs. Crypto: The Tokenization Battle

Beyond market structure, another hot topic is tokenization of traditional assets. Citadel, ever the cautious gatekeeper, warns of perils, while Galaxy Digital, the intrepid explorer, embraces tokenized securities with the zeal of a man discovering a new continent. 🚢📈

Hammond said the debate is intensifying in DC, with the SEC hinting at guidance on tokenized equities soon. A hint, one might say, as subtle as a thunderclap in a drawing room. ⚡

Banks Push Back Against Stablecoins

Banks, now emboldened, are lobbying with the fervor of a Victorian matron defending her tea set, fearing interest-bearing stablecoins might drain their deposits. While earlier compromises had limited stablecoin issuers, banks now want additional restrictions that close off affiliates, brokers, and dealers from offering them. A battle of titans, or perhaps a game of chess with all the pieces missing. 🎲

This puts them directly at odds with the crypto industry, which argues stablecoins bring efficiency, transparency, and lower costs for cross-border payments. A noble cause, if one can ignore the faint scent of irony. 🧼

Odds of Passage

Prediction markets, that modern oracle, assign a 40% chance of passage, yet Hammond, with the confidence of a man who’s never been wrong, believes the odds are higher. “The right people are talking,” Hammond said, adding that bipartisan buy-in increases the likelihood of progress. One can only hope the “right people” are not the same ones who once tried to regulate the weather. ☔

If Hammond is correct, the calm is ending. By late fall, crypto could see its most consequential regulatory shifts yet. Between the Senate’s market structure draft, stablecoin debates, and tokenization rules, the next few months may set the foundation for how digital assets operate in the US for years to come. A drama as thrilling as a Victorian melodrama, with more plot twists than a penny dreadful. 📖🎭

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2025-09-04 11:24