Sen. Mark Warner says he’s in ‘crypto hell’ as Senate works to revive stalled market structure bill

The legislative gridlock is getting to Democratic Senator Mark Warner as the Senate Banking Committee tries to revive stalled talks on crypto legislation that fell apart after months of negotiations. 

"I feel like I'm in crypto hell," Warner said on Thursday during a committee hearing. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was also at the hearing to testify about the Financial Stability Oversight Council, tasked with monitoring risks to the financial system. 

"Crypto is here to stay, and we need clear rules of the road," Warner said. "We need to not create a set of rules that leaves huge exemptions and, candidly, takes away some of the prosecutorial powers that exist today," he added, pointing out that national security protections involving decentralized finance are still a real concern.

The hearing followed a meeting on Wednesday with Senate Democrats on the committee, along with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, to discuss crypto market structure legislation, according to people familiar with the matter.

Senators have been working to advance a bill out of their committees to regulate the crypto industry as a whole, divvying up jurisdiction between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission while also setting forth disclosure requirements and anti-money laundering standards. A market structure law, if passed, would help clarify longstanding questions in the crypto industry, like issues involving token issuance, and create guidelines for emerging sectors like tokenized equities. 

The Senate Agriculture Committee, which has jurisdiction over the CFTC, passed its version of the bill last month without Democratic support, in part due to ethics concerns about President Donald Trump and his family's crypto ventures. The Senate Banking Committee was slated to hold a hearing as well in January to amend and vote on its draft, but that meeting was postponed at the last minute after Coinbase withdrew its support, citing concerns over the looming issue of stablecoin yield, among other issues. 

Stablecoin rewards have emerged as one of the most contentious issues in negotiations. Banking groups warn that unclear limits could pull deposits away from traditional institutions, particularly community banks. Some in the crypto industry counter that the issue has already been debated and accuse banks of trying to stifle competition. 

Bipartisan bill?

Once the Senate Banking Committee advances its version, it will have to be combined into one bill with the Senate Agriculture Committee before being sent to the full Senate for a vote. 

There, 60 votes are needed to pass it, meaning that all Republicans and some Democrats would have to support the legislation.

Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, D-Md., who had previously proposed a fix to the stablecoin yield problem, also pushed for progress during Thursday's hearing. 

"I speak for many of my colleagues when I say that we really want to get to a good, bipartisan bill," she said. "I am confident. I feel really good that we are going to get a bipartisan compromise that protects innovation and our community banks." 

Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., asked Bessent about the need to pass a crypto market structure bill, also called Clarity. 

"I think that it's impossible to proceed without it," Bessent said. "We have to get this Clarity Act across the finish line."