Bitcoin Rallies as US Crypto Bill Nears Finish Line, AI Trade Cools

Bitcoin (BTC) rose about 2% on Tuesday to trade above US$66,800 (AU$95,524), after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Congress was at the “1-yard line” on the CLARITY Act, the bill that would split oversight of digital assets between two federal regulators.

Bessent urged lawmakers to pass the legislation before they leave for the August recess. The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act would draw a line between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, treating Bitcoin and Ether as commodities under the CFTC and other tokens as securities under the SEC. 

Bessent’s framing runs ahead of where the bill sits. The House passed the CLARITY Act 294-134 in July 2025, alongside a stablecoin bill and an anti-CBDC measure in the same session, and the Senate Banking Committee cleared its version 15-9 in May.

The bill was placed on the Senate legislative calendar on 1 June but has no scheduled floor vote, and passage there requires 60 votes in a chamber where Republicans hold about 53 seats.

Read more: Glassnode: Bitcoin Tests Key Resistance as Macro Narrative Evolves 

Senators are still fighting over ethics provisions, anti-money-laundering requirements and the exact line between the two regulators. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who filed dozens of amendments during the committee markup, has argued the jurisdictional split is drawn loosely enough to let firms shop for the lighter regulator. 

Beyond dividing SEC and CFTC authority, the bill sets registration requirements for digital-asset exchanges and a framework for tokenised assets and decentralised finance.

On Polymarket, contracts on the CLARITY Act being signed into law this year traded near 47% on Tuesday, up from a July low of 31% but still short of even odds. The Senate and House versions would also have to be reconciled before any bill reaches the president.

Money Rotates And Chip Stocks Slide

Part of Tuesday’s move came from outside crypto. Stephane Ouellette, chief executive of FRNT Financial, said Bitcoin’s path of least resistance was higher, with a raised chance of a breakout “as the AI trade slows”. 

The Nasdaq Composite fell about 2.9% in the week leading up to Tuesday before rebounding 1.29%, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index remains roughly 16% below its three-month high. Bitcoin’s market capitalisation stood near US$1.33 trillion (AU$1.90 trillion), and Ether traded around US$1,928 (AU$2,757).

Other crypto-linked equities tracked Bitcoin higher on the day. Congress returns from its August recess in September, and the Senate has not scheduled a floor vote on the bill.

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