The executive director of crypto advocacy group Coin Center, Peter Van Valkenburgh, issued a stark warning. He says failing to pass the CLARITY Act, a stalled crypto market structure bill, could empower a future, less friendly U.S. government to aggressively regulate the industry.
Van Valkenburgh argued rejecting developer protections in favor of short-term business interests risks a grim future. Without statutory protections, he says, the industry would be governed by prosecutorial discretion and political fashion. The bill stalled in the Senate after disagreements on key provisions like stablecoin yields.
He predicts a future Department of Justice could ramp up prosecutions of privacy-tool developers. He warns that relying on the current administration's friendly discretion is a mistake, as existing guidance can be revoked. The goal of legislation, he stated, is to bind the next administration, not trust the current one.