Republicans are pushing for a markup next week on crypto market structure legislation even as their Democratic counterparts continue to seek changes to the draft text, with just days until lawmakers head out of town for the holidays.
"The clock's ticking," an industry source familiar with market structure efforts told The Hill on Wednesday. "I think that there's 48 hours realistically to see if this is going to move next week."
Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), a key proponent of crypto legislation, said Tuesday that she is aiming to release an updated draft she considers "our best effort to date" by the end of the week and hold a markup on the bill next week.
"I think that we're to the point where it's better to go ahead with a product and mark it up next week and then give everybody a break over the Christmas break to catch their breath," she said at the Blockchain Association Policy Summit.
"We've been engaging hours on end, and it's just time to take a draft," she added. "A couple of things that I can sense are happening. Industry's getting a little concerned about what's happening behind closed doors between Democrats and Republicans. They're ready to see a draft. Our staffs are exhausted. I'm worried that tempers are going to flame. And it's just time to reveal a product."
Senate Republicans and crypto-friendly Democrats have been negotiating market structure legislation for months. The upper chamber opted to tackle the bill separate from stablecoin legislation, which cleared Congress and was signed into law by President Trump in July.
Shortly after, GOP members of the Senate Banking Committee put forward their first discussion draft on the market structure bill, which aims to create clear rules for the crypto industry and split oversight between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
But the Senate Banking draft represents only part of the picture. Given the role of both financial regulators, the Senate Agriculture Committee is also involved in drafting, and its portion remained an unknown for several months.
The panel ultimately released a 155-page draft in November with bipartisan backing, accomplishing a feat that has so far eluded Senate Banking Republicans.
However, the Senate Agriculture draft left key issues unsettled, leaving the entire decentralized finance section open and bracketing provisions that remain up for debate.
Sen. Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), who serves as the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence, suggested Wednesday that a markup is "premature," adding that "both sides are still trading paper."
When The Hill asked about remaining sticking points on the legislation, Gallego laughed and said there were "a ton."
Check out the full report at TheHill.com tomorrow.
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