Coinbase and Ripple executives met Lutnick over CLARITY Act hurdles
Aug 20, 2026
A group of senior U.S. crypto executives has met Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to discuss the CLARITY Act, including unresolved ethics provisions and ways the White House could help secure bipartisan support for the stalled market structure bill.
Crypto executives pressed the economic case for the CLARITY Act
The meeting placed several of the crypto industry’s most prominent executives directly with Lutnick as the administration continued pressing Congress to complete legislation governing the U.S. digital asset market.
Ethics provisions remain a hurdle to bipartisan support
Ethics rules have become one of the most difficult parts of the negotiations as lawmakers seek enough support to move the legislation through the Senate.
White House has taken a direct role in CLARITY Act talks
The Trump administration has spent months working directly with lawmakers and industry groups as the CLARITY Act moved through the Senate.
The bill had already cleared an important procedural hurdle by reaching the Senate calendar, but placement on the calendar did not itself guarantee a floor vote. Senate leadership still needed to allocate time for debate while negotiators worked through provisions capable of keeping enough bipartisan support together.
Coinbase returned to support after earlier CLARITY Act dispute
Armstrong’s presence at the Lutnick meeting also followed a months-long change in Coinbase’s position on the legislation.
The Coinbase chief withdrew support for an earlier version in January, raising concerns about stablecoin rewards, tokenized equities and rules affecting decentralized finance. The company later resumed negotiations with banks and policymakers as lawmakers worked on revised language.
