Key Takeaways
- Saylor expects federal agencies to advance crypto rules under existing law.
- He sees banks expanding bitcoin custody and BTC-backed lending.
- The SEC and Treasury are already advancing separate crypto rulemaking.
Saylor Says Bitcoin Progress Does Not Depend on Congress
Bitcoin’s integration into the U.S. financial system can continue even after the Senate failed to advance major crypto market structure legislation, according to Strategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor. On Sept. 16, Saylor outlined his outlook after the CLARITY Act stalled, arguing that regulators, banks, and capital markets can keep moving without new congressional action.
Saylor wrote on X:
“With CLARITY stalled, I expect the SEC, CFTC, and Treasury to advance rules under existing law, banks to expand bitcoin custody and loans against it, and more capital to favor bitcoin and digital credit. GENIUS supports stablecoin adoption. Progress need not wait for Congress.”
His comments came one day after the Senate rejected cloture on the motion to proceed to H.R. 3633 in a 49-50 vote. The legislation would set up a system for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to regulate the offer and sale of digital commodities.
Saylor has made a similar case before, arguing that BTC’s trajectory is not dependent on Congress completing a broader crypto market structure framework. He previously maintained that bitcoin does not depend on passage of the CLARITY Act.
Regulators Are Already Advancing Crypto Rules
Federal agencies have continued moving ahead under existing authority. On Aug. 18, the SEC proposed Regulation Crypto Assets, which would establish new exemptions and regulatory conditions for certain investment contracts involving crypto assets.
Treasury is separately implementing the GENIUS Act, which Saylor cited as supporting stablecoin adoption. The department opened proposed rulemaking for the payment stablecoin law on Aug. 17, seeking public comment on rules governing the issuance, offering, and sale of payment stablecoins in the United States.
Those developments support Saylor’s broader point that bitcoin’s regulatory environment can continue evolving even while comprehensive market structure legislation remains stalled in Congress. Treasury’s implementation of the GENIUS Act also puts stablecoins at the center of a separate regulatory track that does not depend on passage of the CLARITY Act. Stablecoins are crypto assets designed to maintain a relatively stable value, typically by being pegged to a fiat currency such as the U.S. dollar.
Banks and Digital Credit Expand Saylor’s Bitcoin Thesis
Saylor’s latest statement also points to banks as a major channel for bitcoin’s next phase of institutional expansion. He expects financial institutions to increase BTC custody and loans secured by the asset, extending the crypto further into conventional banking and credit markets.
He has previously pushed for greater bitcoin integration with banks, custodians, and financial markets. Custody allows institutions to hold BTC for customers, while bitcoin-backed lending lets borrowers use the asset as collateral without selling it.
The Strategy executive chairman’s reference to “digital credit” also reflects Strategy’s capital-market approach. Strategy held 845,050 BTC as of Sept. 13, and the company has repurchased $139 million of STRC, one of its bitcoin-linked credit products.
With the CLARITY Act stalled, Saylor’s position is that bitcoin adoption, stablecoin regulation, bank participation, and digital credit can continue advancing through regulators and financial institutions without waiting for another congressional vote.
