The crypto industry spent much of the past two years preparing for regulatory clarity in Washington. This week, one of its biggest legislative priorities hit a major roadblock.
The CLARITY Act failed to advance in the Senate on Tuesday, falling short of the 60 votes needed to bring the bill to the floor for debate. The setback significantly narrows the bill’s path this year, with the Senate calendar tightening ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
Strategists say crypto exchanges such as Coinbase may have more at stake than most from the stalled legislation.
Elsewhere, Standard Chartered is betting big on Arbitrum, Bitmine is turning its Ether treasury into a source of staking revenue, and Phemex’s CEO says AI has been a “net negative” for crypto.
Coinbase faces greater CLARITY Act fallout, Saxo strategist says
Saxo Bank strategist Ruben Dalfovo said Coinbase has more at stake in the CLARITY Act setback because its trading business is directly exposed to US market-structure rules.
In a Wednesday note following the bill’s failed procedural vote, Dalfovo said Coinbase is particularly exposed because new rules could determine registration requirements, tradable assets and who can participate on its platform. The setback could also affect other crypto-linked companies, though Dalfovo said their businesses are less directly tied to market-structure rules. Circle’s exposure is tied more closely to USDC adoption and reserve interest, while Strategy relies primarily on its Bitcoin holdings and access to financing.
The market reaction reflected those concerns. Coinbase, Circle and Strategy shares fell between 5% and 10% after the vote and continued lower the following day.
Standard Chartered sees Arbitrum hitting $10 as Wall Street moves onchain
Standard Chartered sees Arbitrum outperforming Bitcoin and Ether through 2030, driven by traditional finance firms moving assets onchain and transforming the network’s economics.
Geoff Kendrick, Standard Chartered’s global head of digital assets research, said Arbitrum receives 10% of net protocol revenue from companies building on it. Robinhood Chain, launched in July, has materially changed Arbitrum’s economics, with September revenue expected at $5 million, over five times the prior level. Kendrick projects ARB at $10 by 2030, a 70-fold increase from current prices around $0.14, which have gained 86% in the past month.
Standard Chartered’s thesis relies on tokenized assets reaching $39 billion and forecasts of $4 trillion by 2028. Arbitrum’s layer-2 infrastructure and revenue-sharing model position it as a beneficiary, but adoption pace remains uncertain.
Bitmine eyes $334 million in annual staking revenue from Ether treasury
Bitmine projects $334 million in annual staking revenue from its $15.8 billion crypto treasury, with over 5 million Ether now staked to generate recurring income even during volatile conditions.
Bitmine added 27,180 ETH last week, bringing its holdings to 5.95 million ETH worth $15.4 billion, representing roughly 4.9% of Ether’s circulating supply. More than 5.06 million ETH is now staked, generating an estimated $334 million in annualized revenue at current rates. Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF stakes 84.6% of its Ether, according to its webpage.
Unlike Bitcoin treasury companies, Bitmine can earn recurring income from its crypto holdings through staking. Its stock has gained nearly 38% over the past month but remains down year to date, according to Yahoo Finance. Strategy, meanwhile, went a second straight week without buying Bitcoin, instead spending $139.3 million to repurchase preferred stock.
AI is draining crypto liquidity and empowering attackers, Phemex CEO says
Phemex CEO Federico Variola said AI has been a “net negative” for crypto, diverting liquidity from the industry while empowering attackers who exploit protocols.
Speaking on Cointelegraph’s Chain Reaction, Variola said AI has “empowered a lot of bad actors” and driven up cybersecurity costs for smaller teams. In July, attackers drained roughly $116 million in Bitcoin from more than 5,200 addresses tied to a Coldcard hardware wallet flaw widely believed to have been found through malicious AI use. Coinkite CEO Rodolfo Novak warned that AI-assisted code review now outpaces seasoned experts.
Variola warned AI threats could make self-custody and DeFi less appealing to retail users, pushing the industry toward greater centralization. He sees practical benefits in AI agents for portfolio building and trading decisions, but said they will not fully replace human judgment. CertiK’s Natalie Newson, however, noted AI can also be “one of the biggest defenses.”
Crypto Biz is your weekly pulse on the business behind blockchain and crypto, delivered directly to your inbox every Thursday.
