WASHINGTON — The Senate advanced a major cryptocurrency regulation bill Monday on a bipartisan vote two weeks after every Senate Democrat united to block it.
The procedural vote on the GENIUS Act — which would establish the first regulatory framework for issuers of stablecoins, digital tokens pegged to fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar — was 66-32. Sixteen Democrats voted with the majority of Senate Republicans to advance the bill. Two Republicans, Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Jerry Moran of Kansas, voted against it.
The bill needed to cross the 60-vote threshold to advance to final passage in the Senate, where Republicans hold a three-seat majority.
Democratic support to proceed with the legislation was unlocked after a group of bipartisan negotiators — Sens. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn; Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo.; Mark Warner, D-Va.; Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.; Angela Alsobrooks, D-Md.; and Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz. — reached an agreement late last week on an amendment to the bill that addressed key sticking points for Democrats.
The amendment, which Democratic negotiators circulated over the weekend and has been obtained by NBC News, includes new changes to consumer protection safeguards and limits on tech companies issuing stablecoins, and it would extend ethics standards to special government employees — which would temporarily apply to Elon Musk and tech entrepreneur David Sacks.
In exchange for the negotiated changes, Democrats involved in discussions said they have committed to support advancing the GENIUS Act, according to multiple sources familiar with the talks.
Senate Republicans have been noncommittal about backing the amendment, but the updated changes are likely to get more Democrats on board beyond the core group involved in negotiations.
The bill hit a roadblock two weeks ago when Democrats, along with two Republicans — Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Josh Hawley of Missouri — blocked the bill from advancing, demanding stronger national security and anti-money laundering provisions.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., criticized his colleagues across the aisle for delaying the vote, pointing out that no changes have been made to the underlying bill that Democrats blocked two weeks ago.
“It’s really hard to understand why we needed to wait an additional 11 days for Democrats to finally agree to move,” Thune said Monday, adding that he expects the Senate won’t vote on final passage before it leaves for the Memorial Day recess.
The Trump family’s crypto dealings with World Liberty Financial, and President Donald Trump’s dinner for the top holders of his meme coin, have aggravated concerns among Democrats. (Meme coins are different from stable coins, as they typically derive value from internet culture rather than from an underlying utility or asset.) But no provisions in the negotiated amendment would prohibit Trump and his family from continuing their crypto ventures.
The bill text includes a provision that would “prohibit any member of Congress or senior executive branch official from issuing a payment stablecoin product during their time in public service.”
Some Democrats have argued it needs to be stronger.
“Basic flaws remain unaddressed,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., the top Democrat on the Banking Committee, said on the Senate floor Monday. “Congress should not choose to enable the president’s egregious corruption.”
Several Senate Democrats have also introduced bills targeting the Trump family’s crypto ventures to prevent the president from potentially profiting off of the deals.
Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., for example, plans to offer legislation called the STABLE Act, which would prevent elected officials and federal candidates from issuing or endorsing digital assets, as an amendment to the GENIUS Act.
Democrats are expected to force votes on those bills this week, but they are unlikely to go anywhere in the GOP-controlled chamber.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., convened a caucus-wide call Sunday night to discuss the GENIUS Act. Warren voiced her concerns about the bill during the call, according to a person with knowledge of her comments.
While some Democrats like Warren said they can’t vote for the bill without stronger provisions that limit Trump’s profiting from digital assets, others, like Warner, argued that Congress can no longer sit on the sidelines of the evolving cryptocurrency space.
“Many senators, myself included, have very real concerns about the Trump family’s use of crypto technologies to evade oversight, hide shady financial dealings, and personally profit at the expense of everyday Americans,” Warner, who voted to advance the GENIUS Act, wrote in a statement Monday.
“But we cannot allow that corruption to blind us to the broader reality: blockchain technology is here to stay. If American lawmakers don’t shape it, others will — and not in ways that serve our interests or democratic values,” he added.
If the Senate ultimately passes the GENIUS Act, its future is less clear in the House, where there is a different bill to regulate stablecoin issuers. Cryptocurrency advocates argue that Congress should also pass legislation to determine regulatory treatment of digital assets and digital asset securities.
“The winners, if Congress passes this bill, are Americans who want to make payments faster and easier to access,” said Kara Calvert, the vice president for public policy at Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange. “It’s transformational technology, so passing this bill is a win for them. It’s not just a win for the industry or a political candidate.”
