U.S. Senate Democrats are preparing to restart discussions on long-awaited legislation for regulating the crypto market, signaling a renewed effort to reduce uncertainty around digital assets. This closed-door meeting is the first formal Democratic engagement since the bill’s markup was delayed last month, raising hopes that progress may resume after weeks of delay, according to journalist Eleanor Terrett.

CLARITY Act Back in Focus

The main focus is the CLARITY Act, which seeks to create a clear framework for regulating digital assets in the U.S. A key part of the bill is defining the roles of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), an issue that has long divided regulators, lawmakers, and industry participants.

While some parts of the bill have already passed through committees, disagreements over regulatory scope, enforcement authority, and compliance rules continue to slow progress. The renewed Democratic talks are seen as a necessary step to resolve these issues. Momentum has increased following reported pressure from the White House, which has urged lawmakers and industry groups to settle disputes by the end of February.

Arizona Proposes XRP as Reserve Asset

In a parallel political development, the state of Arizona is leading a novel legislative concept that could grant XRP first-ever formal recognition. The proposed Senate Bill 1649 aims to establish a ‘Digital Assets Strategic Reserve Fund,’ a state-managed treasury for digital assets. This move coincides with increased usage of the XRP Ledger, which has seen a surge in daily transactions and activity from large token holders.

Network Activity Hits Record Highs

The XRP Ledger is exhibiting strong fundamental usage metrics, independent of market speculation. Daily successful transactions have surged by approximately 40%. The network is currently processing around 2.5 million transactions per day, a substantial increase from the average of 1.5 million seen in the fourth quarter of 2025. This heightened load is being managed without any degradation in network performance.

Accompanying this rise in general usage is notable activity from large holders, often referred to as ‘whales.’ The 30-day average for large token transfers to the Binance exchange stands at about 2.54 billion XRP. Daily inflows from these major investors are hovering near 50 million tokens, representing the highest sustained level since December 2025. Such movements can indicate strategic portfolio rebalancing, liquidity provisioning, or hedging activities by institutional players.

Further signaling institutional interest, the Bitwise XRP ETF recorded net inflows of three million U.S. dollars on February 24.

Senate Struggles to Meet Deadline

The fate of the U.S. crypto market structure bill, known as the CLARITY Act, hangs in the balance as lawmakers run out of time to advance it in the Senate. The legislation, which passed the House of Representatives in July 2025 with bipartisan support, has yet to clear a key procedural step. With no date set for a Senate Banking Committee review, concerns are growing that the bill could stall.

Republican Senator Tim Scott has warned that without a markup, the bill cannot move forward. ‘No markup means no committee approval, and no committee approval means no Senate floor vote,’ he said. Unresolved issues slow progress. Lawmakers are still negotiating several sticking points, including rules governing stablecoins, protections for developers working on decentralized finance (DeFi), and broader political alignment within the Senate.

New concerns from law enforcement agencies over DeFi-related provisions have added to the delays, according to people familiar with the discussions. Deadline pressure builds. Time is emerging as the main challenge rather than political support. Lawmakers face an informal deadline in late May, after which the congressional calendar is expected to shift toward election priorities.

Senate advances funding bill as crypto legislation faces hurdles. Senator Bernie Moreno said the bill risks being sidelined if it does not reach the Senate floor soon. Senator Cynthia Lummis has warned that delays could stretch much further if momentum is lost. Clarity Act Polymarket Prediction. Expectations around the bill are already shifting. On the prediction platform Polymarket, the perceived likelihood of the bill passing this year has declined in recent weeks, reflecting growing uncertainty.