President Donald Trump has agreed to tougher conflict-of-interest restrictions in the latest version of the U.S. Senate’s CLARITY Act, clearing a major obstacle ahead of a key procedural vote on the sweeping cryptocurrency bill.

Senate Republicans released the revised legislation after incorporating 126 substantive changes sought by Democrats. Trump agreed to most of the proposed ethics provisions, including giving state attorneys general a role in enforcing restrictions on public officials’ crypto activities.

The changes are aimed at addressing concerns over conflicts of interest involving Trump, whose family has extensive cryptocurrency interests, while giving Democrats additional safeguards needed to support the legislation.

 

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Key Restrictions Added to the CLARITY Act

  • Divestiture or blind trusts: Federal elected officials, federal judges, and their spouses would have to divest significant financial interests in companies that issue digital assets or place those holdings in a blind trust.

  • Restrictions on issuing digital assets: Presidents, vice presidents, members of Congress, federal judges, and their spouses would be barred from issuing or sponsoring digital assets while in office.

  • State enforcement: State attorneys general would be given authority to enforce the ethics provisions, alongside the Justice Department.

  • Power to sue exchanges: State attorneys general could sue crypto exchanges that list digital assets prohibited under the ethics provisions.

  • Conflict-of-interest rules: The restrictions would apply to federally elected officials and their spouses, creating rules specifically designed to prevent public officials from using their positions to benefit from crypto businesses.

The provisions could potentially force Trump to divest or restructure significant crypto interests, including holdings connected to World Liberty Financial, the Trump family’s crypto venture. Trump reported more than $1.4 billion in crypto-related income in 2025, including more than $500 million from World Liberty Financial-related sales, according to financial disclosures.

 

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The revised language marks a significant concession after months of negotiations over whether the president and other senior officials should be subject to the bill’s conflict-of-interest rules.

The Senate is scheduled to hold a procedural vote. The vote requires 60 senators, meaning Republicans would need support from at least seven Democrats or independents if all 53 Republicans back the measure.

The vote is only the first hurdle.

Even if the bill clears the Senate, lawmakers would still need to resolve amendments, secure final passage and reconcile the legislation with the House before the end of the congressional session.

The CLARITY Act would establish a broader federal framework for digital assets, including rules governing

  • which tokens fall under securities or commodities regulation, and

  • which federal agencies oversee different parts of the market.

For the crypto industry, the ethics agreement could be as important politically as the market-structure provisions themselves since it removes one of the biggest objections Democrats have raised while putting new limits on how senior U.S. officials can participate in the digital-asset economy.

 

 

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