Crypto markets went into freefall Monday night after the Senate failed to advance the CLARITY Act, with the bill’s collapse triggering the sharpest selloff crypto has seen in weeks. The total crypto market cap fell to $2.70 trillion, down 2.9% over 24 hours. Bitcoin dropped to $76,047.75, later breaking below $75,000 for the first time since August 20. Ethereum slid to $2,406.95, down 3.5%, while XRP fell to $1.34, down 1.0%. More than $300 million in crypto long positions were liquidated within 20 minutes of the vote’s failure.
How the Vote Fell Apart
Bipartisan negotiations collapsed just before the vote, with staff for Senator Tim Scott abruptly ending final talks on ethics provisions in Senator Thom Tillis’s office. What followed was a wave of no votes from senators on both sides. Democrats including Gillibrand, Warner, Booker, Warnock, Gallego, Alsobrooks and Cortez Masto, all of whom had spent months negotiating the bill, voted no. Republican Senators Susan Collins, Josh Hawley and Jerry Moran also broke ranks to vote against cloture.
The cloture motion needed 60 votes to advance the bill to formal debate and fell short. Crypto community now expects CFTC Chairman Selig and SEC Chairman Paul Atkins to issue statements confirming both agencies intend to continue advancing crypto regulations independently, regardless of the bill’s outcome.
What It Means Going Forward
The bill is now widely seen as dead for 2026, with no realistic path to reconsideration before the midterm elections. Prediction market odds of CLARITY passing this year plummeted to just 5%, an all-time low.
Not everyone is writing off the setback entirely. Some experts pointed to $71,000 as a strong support zone for Bitcoin if the selloff continues, adding the broader regulatory process isn’t necessarily over and additional crypto-related news is still expected later this week.
Bright Spots Amid the Selloff
A handful of tokens bucked the trend. Zcash held relatively steady, dipping just 0.6% to $1,132.27, while Official Trump token surged 16.2% and privacy coin Firo jumped 18.4%, standing out against the broader market decline.
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