Bitwise has identified four parts of the crypto industry that benefited after the CLARITY Act failed to move forward in the Senate. These include stablecoin platforms, established exchanges, tokenization companies and tokens that use revenue for buybacks.
Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan wrote in a Sept. 30 memo that faster regulatory action and fewer business restrictions helped explain crypto’s gains after the Senate failed to advance the bill on Sept. 15.
During the period he reviewed, Bitcoin gained 8% and Ethereum rose 7%. Hougan said the industry had accepted some restrictions during negotiations in exchange for clearer long-term rules, but the failed vote left several businesses with more room to operate under existing regulations.
He also warned that agency decisions are less protected from political changes than laws passed by Congress. A future administration taking office in January 2029 could appoint SEC and CFTC leaders with different views on crypto regulation.
One area that benefited was tokens that use platform revenue to buy back their own supply. By Sept. 30, NEAR had gained 104%, Uniswap 49%, Pump 19%, Hyperliquid 15% and Lighter 10%.
Hougan said uncertainty around token buybacks had been one weakness in the proposed legislation. A token could qualify as a digital commodity, but later actions by its issuer could potentially raise questions about whether it should instead be treated as a security.
The SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance issued guidance on token buyback announcements in September. The staff said that for a non-security token, the network must be functional and have no central party for certain buyback announcements not to be viewed as promises of managerial efforts.
For unfinished networks, the SEC staff said a buyback announcement could raise securities-related questions if the issuer presents the repurchases as creating returns or yield for holders.
The SEC also made clear that these FAQs reflect staff views, do not have legal force and do not change existing law.
Tokenized stock businesses also gained a new path after the SEC issued an exemption on Sept. 17. The five-year framework allows qualifying platforms to test trading in certain tokenized U.S. stocks through permissioned automated market makers and liquidity pools.
The framework comes with conditions, including limits on eligible stocks and trading volume, equivalent shareholder rights and trading pauses that match the underlying stock market.
Hougan identified Securitize as one company that could benefit from the framework because of its tokenization work involving BlackRock, Apollo and KKR.
Robinhood has also been testing tokenized stocks, although its current Stock Tokens are different from the shares covered by the SEC exemption. Its existing tokens are debt securities issued by a Jersey-based Robinhood entity and are not currently available to U.S. investors.
Stablecoin platforms also retained room to offer certain customer rewards. Hougan said the proposed CLARITY legislation would have prevented platforms from paying interest or yield on stablecoin balances.
The GENIUS Act, which became law in July 2025, already prevents payment stablecoin issuers from paying interest or yield simply for holding their tokens. Hougan said this still leaves exchanges room to provide some third-party rewards.
He identified Coinbase as a major beneficiary because the exchange uses stablecoin rewards to attract customers.
Banking groups had opposed this approach. The American Bankers Association, Independent Community Bankers of America and 76 state banking associations previously asked senators to tighten stablecoin reward rules, arguing that such incentives could encourage customers to move deposits away from banks.
Established crypto exchanges such as Coinbase and Kraken also retained certain advantages after the legislative setback.
Hougan said a national spot-exchange license under the proposed bill could have made it easier for large traditional financial companies to enter the market. Existing exchanges, meanwhile, still benefit from the regulatory work they have already completed across individual states.
He also argued that the proposed legislation could have limited exchanges’ ability to operate both trading and brokerage businesses under the same structure.
However, federal legislation would not have removed every state-level requirement. Coinme CEO Neil Bergquist said separate state licensing rules would still remain even if market structure legislation passed.
The Senate vote ended with a 49–50 result, but seven Democratic senators who opposed the procedural motion said they planned to continue bipartisan discussions on the legislation.
Overall, Hougan’s analysis points to a mixed outcome from the CLARITY Act setback. Some crypto businesses avoided restrictions that were part of the proposed legislation, while the industry also lost the broader legal certainty that a completed market-structure law could have provided.
