Cryptocurrency Market Structure Bill May Be Delayed Until After U.S. Midterm Elections, Conflict of Interest Clauses Become Focus of Bipartisan Attention

According to the latest analysis by TD Cowen's Washington research team, if political obstacles are not resolved this year, the structural legislation for the U.S. cryptocurrency market may be postponed until 2027 for passage, and could ultimately be delayed until 2029 to fully take effect.

The legislation is crucial because it aims to establish a clear regulatory framework for digital assets and is seen as the next cornerstone of U.S. crypto regulation after the GENIUS Act.

The research team mentioned in a report released on Monday that although there is still a possibility of passing the bill in 2026, political games in Congress make a delay more likely.

Currently, the Democratic Party is pushing to involve high-level officials, including President Trump, in cryptocurrency activities, which directly touches on the interests of the Trump family and could complicate the bill's passage this year.

In fact, Bloomberg disclosed as early as last year that the Trump family profited billions of dollars through related cryptocurrency projects. Therefore, unless the effective date of this clause is postponed until after the next presidential inauguration, Trump will never accept it.

Some analysts predict that the Democratic Party is expected to regain control of the House of Representatives after the 2026 midterm elections, so they are reluctant to push the bill now and prefer to delay legislation and rule-making powers until a future government possibly led by Democrats.

To break through the procedural hurdles in the Senate, the bill needs the support of at least 7 to 9 Democratic senators, giving Democrats the key leverage to delay the bill's progress.

The only potential breakthrough at present is to significantly postpone the effective date of the entire bill (including the sensitive conflict of interest clauses), pushing it into the next government term. However, such a compromise requires negotiations that are extremely difficult.

In summary, this market structure bill, which was supposed to bring certainty to the industry, has become deeply intertwined with short-term election politics and bipartisan struggles. Its legislative timeline has evolved from an urgently awaited policy process into a long game testing American political cycle patience.

#MarketStructureBill