Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has delivered a strong and urgent warning to the crypto industry: the Clarity Act — the long-awaited regulatory clarity bill for digital assets in the US — must pass in the next two weeks (specifically during the week of May 11 or May 18) or it risks being significantly delayed or even derailed by the upcoming 2026 midterm elections.
Speaking at the Consensus conference, Garlinghouse emphasized that there is currently strong bipartisan support and enough votes in the Senate to reach the critical 60-vote threshold. However, the political calendar is extremely tight. If the Senate Banking Committee does not complete the markup process soon, the bill could be pushed into the second half of the year or even next year, when election politics will dominate Washington.
This would create prolonged regulatory uncertainty for the entire crypto sector, especially for stablecoins, staking, and institutional adoption. Garlinghouse stressed that the industry cannot afford to wait any longer.
Source: https://x.com/Xaif_Crypto/status/2051690779383599106 (excerpt from Brad Garlinghouse’s speech at Consensus)
