Senate Crypto Bill Classifies Network Tokens as Commodities Like BTC

• The U.S. Senate discussion draft bill intends to classify network tokens as commodities.
• The policymakers also show that tokens with ETFs or ETPs are not securities.
• Wall Street analysts believe that the passage of the Clarity Act is a hallmark catalyst for altseason 2026.

The newly published Senate Banking draft of market structure has classified network tokens as commodities. The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which currently has bipartisan support, intends to classify network tokens – such as XRP, Cardano (ADA), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Solana (SOL) – under the same category as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH).

Clarity Act Draft Classifies Network Tokens as Commodities

According to page 98 of the Senate’s Clarity Act draft, network tokens shall not be classified as ancillary assets. If adopted as it is, the Senate draft will put network tokens under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and not the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

This Senate draft overrides all existing securities laws under the Howey test and categorizes network tokens in the same way as gold and Bitcoin. Most importantly, the Senate draft states that even if a crypto token is the underlying asset of a U.S.-listed exchange-traded fund ETF, it is still not a security asset.

As such, the majority of crypto network tokens that received the SEC’s greenlight for spot ETF trading in 2025 are still not under the jurisdiction of the SEC. As such, crypto projects with significant decentralization will benefit from the Clarity Act, if the bill is adopted as it is in the near future.

Source: Senate 

What’s Next?

The Senate Banking Committee, led by Chair Tim Scott, will vote on the draft on Thursday, January 15, 2026. According to Senator Cynthia Lummis, the draft legislation currently has bipartisan support, thus signaling potential passage before the end of the first quarter. 

Following the draft consensus in the Senate, SEC Chair Paul Atkins stated that the agency is ready to work with the CFTC. Furthermore, both agencies have been working to help President Donald Trump make the United States a crypto capital of the world.

As such, Patrick Witt, who is part of President Trump’s council of advisors for digital assets, urged the crypto community to trust the process of making the Clarity Act a law.

“Don’t be a panican. Stay engaged, and trust the process. CLARITY is near,” Witt stated.

Is Altseason Next?

Following the publication of the Clarity Act ahead of Thursday’s markup, the crypto market has gained bullish momentum. The total crypto market cap has surged by 1.3% in the past 24 hours to hover about $3.2 trillion at press time.

According to Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, the expected altseason 2025 failed to happen due to the Senate’s bipartisan delays on the Clarity Act. As such, the odds of altseason 2026 happening are higher, amid the ongoing capital rotation. 

Related: US Crypto Bill Nears Markup as Key Disputes Remain Unresolved