The White House said federal officials are speeding up work on Bitcoin and broader crypto market structure legislation, arguing that clear rules are needed to bring institutional money into the market. Speaking Tuesday in Washington during an interview with Yahoo Finance, Patrick Witt said trillions of dollars in institutional capital remain sidelined without regulatory clarity.
Senate still revising the Clarity Act
Witt, executive director of the President’s Council of Advisors for Digital Assets, said officials are working to pass legislation but key pieces are still moving through the Senate. He said the House passed its version of the Clarity Act last year, while senators continue drafting amendments. Provisions tied to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have cleared the Agriculture Committee, while sections dealing with the Securities and Exchange Commission remain before the Senate Banking Committee.
A January markup was postponed, and negotiations are still focused on unresolved issues. Witt pointed to stablecoin yield provisions and concerns about deposit flight as major areas where compromise is still needed. He said the White House has hosted stakeholders and remains directly involved in the talks.
Federal Bitcoin oversight is being centralized
Witt described Bitcoin management at the federal level as a separate priority from market structure legislation. He said an executive order stopped what he called uncontrolled liquidation of digital assets across agencies. According to Witt, that move may have prevented losses that could have reached tens of billions of dollars.
He said officials are now centralizing oversight and improving wallet accounting across the government. At the same time, they are studying ways to increase holdings on a budget-neutral basis. Witt referenced legislation from Cynthia Lummis and a forthcoming House bill from Representative Begich. He said Congress could authorize direct purchases if appropriations approval is granted, though those discussions are still active.
Officials tie clearer rules to bank participation
Witt said clearer standards would let banks and crypto firms operate with greater confidence. He also said cooperation between the two sectors is increasing. Referring to large financial institutions, he said there is significant opportunity for firms such as JPMorgan if the regulatory framework becomes clearer. For now, the administration is still waiting on committee reconciliation while pushing both crypto legislation and federal Bitcoin oversight work.