Brian Armstrong wants you to know there’s a difference between what banking lobbyists say in public and what individual banks are doing in private. The Coinbase CEO has been making the case that most banks actually welcome the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, even as some of the industry’s loudest trade groups push back against it.
The trade group problem
Armstrong first flagged this split at the World Liberty Forum in February 2026, arguing that opposition to the CLARITY Act comes primarily from banking trade groups rather than the banks themselves. Coinbase is already supporting crypto infrastructure development for five of the world’s largest banks.
The Senate Banking Committee advanced the CLARITY Act by a bipartisan vote of 15-9 in May 2026, following a compromise on stablecoin rewards. Armstrong has indicated the bill could be put to a vote by September 15.
Jamie Dimon enters the chat
Not everyone in banking is quietly getting on board. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon publicly criticized Armstrong’s characterization of bank sentiment in May 2026, claiming that banks “will not accept it that way.”
What the CLARITY Act actually does
The bill’s core contribution is dividing regulatory oversight of digital assets between the SEC and the CFTC. The legislation also lays groundwork for stablecoin regulations under the related GENIUS Act. The compromise that got the bill through committee involved negotiations over stablecoin rewards and market-structure rules.
Why this moment is different
The bill has backing from the Trump administration and enough bipartisan support to have cleared committee with a comfortable margin. The fact that major banks are already building infrastructure with Coinbase suggests the private sector isn’t waiting for Washington to finish deliberating.
The September 15 timeline Armstrong referenced is worth watching closely.