TL;DR:
- Moreno said he wants a committee markup on the CLARITY Act by the end of May, sharpening expectations around a possible move in Washington.
- Polymarket odds for the bill passing in 2026 fell to 46%, showing that confidence has weakened even as the political timetable sounds more aggressive.
- Jurisdictional disputes, stablecoin definitions, and monetary-policy concerns remain central obstacles, making the late-May committee meeting a critical test for U.S. crypto legislation.
Bernie Moreno has injected fresh urgency into the debate over U.S. crypto market structure, suggesting a major digital-asset bill could move faster than many traders now expect. What makes the moment feel unusually tense is that legislative momentum and market confidence are suddenly moving in opposite directions. Moreno is pushing for a committee markup by the end of May on the CLARITY Act, legislation meant to establish a legal framework for digital assets. Yet even as that timetable sharpens, prediction market conviction has softened, signaling that Washington optimism is now being met with rising caution across crypto markets.
That contrast is showing up most clearly in sentiment data. Polymarket traders have cut the odds of the CLARITY Act passing in 2026 to 46%, a sign that procedural friction in the Senate is starting to outweigh political headlines. A higher probability had been priced in earlier, but the market has turned less certain as lawmakers keep arguing over the pace and shape of the bill. Moreno remains publicly committed to a late-May move, yet investors are still signaling that momentum alone is not enough to guarantee passage through the legislative process this spring.
🚨NEW: At an event in DC this evening, Senator @berniemoreno was asked about the timeline for crypto market structure legislation.
“I think we’re going to get it done by the end of May,” he said.
The Ohio Republican warned last month that if the Clarity Act isn’t passed by May,… https://t.co/wKkIwF7tBT
— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) April 22, 2026
Washington’s crypto push enters a narrower window
Moreno’s push matters because he is presenting the bill as more than a symbolic regulatory gesture. His view is that the CLARITY Act addresses foundational loopholes in how digital assets and digital-ledger activity are handled in the United States. He is also responding to stronger lobbying pressure from banks, while trying to position the bill as a balance between innovation and systemic safety. In that framing, delay is not neutral. Delay risks leaving markets fragmented for longer, with legal ambiguity continuing to shape how firms build, list, and operate around crypto nationwide today.
Still, the timetable is far from universally accepted. Jurisdictional disputes, concerns about monetary-policy effects, and disagreements over how to define a stablecoin issuer are all helping slow the path forward. Those technical questions are no longer side issues; they are becoming the choke points of the entire discussion. That is why the next few weeks matter so much. Moreno has set a clear target, but the bill now enters a narrower and more politically exposed phase. For crypto markets, the late-May committee meeting is becoming a test of whether Washington can turn momentum into law.
