Senate Agriculture Committee advances digital asset bill as Trump’s crypto ties block bipartisan support

The Senate Agriculture Committee approved its version of a digital asset market structure bill in a narrow 12-11 party-line vote. Democrats, including Sen. Cory Booker, expressed frustration that bipartisan progress stalled after the holidays, attributing the shift partly to President Donald Trump's significant financial ties to the crypto industry, which have generated an estimated $1.4 billion. An amendment proposed by Sen. Michael Bennet addressing these conflicts of interest, stemming from Trump's ventures like World Liberty Financial and a stake in American Bitcoin, was ultimately not adopted, with the Chair suggesting the issue was outside the scope of the current bill. The bill, which grants broader oversight to the CFTC and supports DeFi, now moves to the Senate Banking Committee for its markup, though that process is already complicated by industry withdrawal of support over other unresolved issues. Ultimately, both committee bills must be merged and pass the full Senate with 60 votes, a challenging prospect given the current lack of Democratic support for the Agriculture Committee's version.

(Source：The Block)