Crypto and Bank Reps Head to Capitol Hill to Review Stablecoin Deal as Details Remain Under Wraps
The text is almost guaranteed to include a ban on yield on idle balances, which banks have opposed from the start
Welcome to the Monday edition of the Crypto In America newsletter!
What you’ll read: Industry stakeholders are set to review long-awaited deal language from the Senate Banking Committee and the White House on stablecoin yield and rewards; plus, Crypto In America joins Rumble; what to watch this week; and a look back at the weekend’s top stories.
Representatives from the crypto and banking industries will be heading to Capitol Hill this week to review the product of a long awaited compromise over whether crypto firms should be allowed to pay customers yield and rewards on their stablecoin holdings.
The White House is said to have reached a compromise with Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), who have led nearly two months of discussions tied to the Senate’s crypto market structure legislation, the Clarity Act, and echoed banks’ concerns that stablecoin yield on deposits could drive deposit flight and strain lending.
But it’s unclear how the industry will respond to the new legislative text, which has been kept tightly under wraps so far.
Representatives from crypto trade associations are scheduled to meet with the Senate Banking Committee later today, and banking representatives will meet to review the text on Tuesday, industry sources familiar with the proceedings told Crypto In America.
“So far I don’t think anyone has a great sense of what is in it,” said one banking source.
The text is almost guaranteed to include one feature: a ban on yield on idle balances, which banks have opposed from the start.
Last week at the DC Blockchain Summit, one of the Clarity Act’s key negotiators, Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), hinted that crypto platforms could be barred from offering rewards framed as deposit yield or tied to the amount of assets a user holds.
“Anything that sounds like banking product terminology will not appear,” she said.
While the reaction from both sides remains to be seen, there may be little time for renegotiation if the Senate Banking Committee targets an April markup following the Easter recess, set to begin Friday but subject to change amid debates over government funding and the voter ID-focused SAVE America Act.
Plus, other areas of the bill, including DeFi, token classification, and tokenization, still need final touches before Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) can schedule a markup.
Meanwhile, a new study from the White House Council of Economic Advisers examining stablecoin yield and its potential impact on deposit flight and bank lending could be released soon, as Banking Committee members continue to press for its publication. Crypto In America first reported the existence of the study last week, following a Senate Republican meeting on market structure where Tillis and others pushed White House Crypto Council Executive Director Patrick Witt to make it public.
The study is said to include economic analysis that leans positive for crypto in the debate over deposit flight.
Crypto In America is now on Rumble!
To mark the new partnership, we sat down with Rumble’s founder and CEO Chris Pavlovski at the 2026 DC Blockchain Summit to break down Tether’s $775M investment in Rumble, the launch of Rumble Wallet, and why crypto and payments are core to the platform’s future.
Plus, we dove deep into free speech, censorship fights, and the media’s shift toward podcasts and live streaming.
Watch this episode on Rumble and all other platforms here.
👀 What To Watch This Week
Tuesday
6:30 p.m.: Fed Governor Michael Barr speaks on the economic outlook and community development in Phoenix, Arizona.
GameStop (GME), which holds over 4,700 BTC, reports earnings after the closing bell.
Wednesday
8:30 a.m.: Blockworks kicks off its Digital Assets Summit in New York City, and will see speakers including Fed Governor Stephen Miran, SEC Chairman Paul Atkins, CFTC Chairman Michael Selig, and Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould.
10:00 a.m.: The House Financial Services Committee holds a hearing on tokenization.
Thursday
10:00 a.m.: The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Digital Assets is holding a hearing examining the pace of innovation and how regulators are adapting.
BitGo (BTGO) reports earnings after the closing bell.
Friday
10:00 a.m.: We get a read on the consumer from the University of Michigan’s March consumer sentiment survey.
Weekend News Flash
ICYMI: The biggest headlines from Friday and the weekend.
Two senators central to the stablecoin yield and rewards discussions reached an agreement in-principle with the White House on legislative text, according to Politico.
A Nevada judge granted a temporary restraining order blocking prediction market Kalshi from operating in the state for 14 days amid an ongoing dispute over sports betting.
CFTC staff issued FAQs on crypto and blockchain activity for registered firms, covering tokenized collateral and digital assets as margin — signaling alignment with the SEC on haircut treatment.
Gold is now in bear market territory, down around 20% from its record high. The safe-haven asset dropped 11% this past week, its biggest weekly loss since 1983, as Middle East tensions prompt a rethink on interest rate cuts, pushing yields higher and weighing on prices.
Bitcoin is back above $70,000 after falling below $69,000 over the weekend on escalating Middle East tensions. The Monday morning surge in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies comes after President Trump said attacks against Iran's infrastructure will be postponed for five days.
Grayscale filed with the SEC to launch a Hyperliquid (HYPE) ETF, tracking one of the largest perpetuals DEXs.
Crypto exchange Gemini is facing a class-action lawsuit from shareholders who allege it misled investors ahead of its IPO by overstating its business and growth prospects before pivoting from crypto to prediction markets.
Remember, new editions of the Crypto In America newsletter drop every Monday and Wednesday.
If you like what you’re reading, don’t forget to subscribe!