US crypto regulation in 2026: Senate bills, stablecoin rules, state Bitcoin experiments

After a year of policy shifts under the Trump administration, 2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal period for US digital asset rules.

Key developments include Senate action on market structure legislation, the rollout of a new stablecoin law, leadership changes at the CFTC, and state-level experiments led by Arizona and Texas, according to Cointelegraph and CryptoNews.

What happens next will influence how tokens trade, how stablecoins are issued, who oversees the market, and how states tax or support blockchain activity.

Here is what to watch and why it matters.

Market structure bill edges forward in the Senate

As of late December, the Senate had not voted on a digital asset market structure bill.

The House passed the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act in July, and senators signaled they would build on that text rather than pass it unchanged, Cointelegraph reported.

Committee leaders released two discussion drafts in 2025. The Senate Banking Committee offered a Republican-led draft in July, while the Senate Agriculture Committee released a bipartisan draft in November.

Both must move through their committees before a floor vote on either bill or a combined version.

Drafts suggest Congress could grant the Commodity Futures Trading Commission more authority over digital assets, while the Securities and Exchange Commission would continue to oversee areas such as exchange-traded funds.

Grayscale said the bill could “facilitate deeper integration between public blockchains and traditional finance” and support regulated trading and on-chain issuance.

Broader participation may follow clearer rules.

“I expect an increasing number of jurisdictions to establish clear and transparent regulatory frameworks,” said Ruslan Lienkha of YouHodler in comments shared with Cointelegraph.

Stablecoin framework moves into rulemaking

The GENIUS Act, signed into law in July 2025, sets a federal framework for payment stablecoins.

It takes effect 18 months after enactment after regulators approve implementation rules, which points to 2026 or later, per Cointelegraph.

The Treasury Department opened two rounds of comments in August and September. Experts say a notice of proposed rulemaking could be public in the first half of 2026.

Other banking regulators are also engaged. On Dec. 16, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation proposed allowing subsidiaries of supervised banks to issue payment stablecoins under GENIUS criteria.

Industry expects banks to test on-chain finance under clearer rules.

“As regulatory clarity solidifies, particularly through laws like the GENIUS Act, banks are increasingly exploring on-chain tooling,” said Bitget CEO Gracy Chen in comments shared with Cointelegraph.

Leadership changes at the CFTC shape supervision

In 2025, four of five CFTC commissioners stepped down, leaving Republican Caroline Pham as acting chair and the sole commissioner as of December.

The White House initially nominated former commissioner Brian Quintenz, then withdrew the pick in September after pushback from industry figures, Cointelegraph reported.

Trump subsequently nominated SEC official Michael Selig, who advanced out of the Senate Agriculture Committee in November and was confirmed 53 to 43 as part of a package of nominees.

As of December, the administration had not announced nominees for the remaining commissioner seats.

States test reserves and tax policy, Arizona in focus

Texas created a state-managed fund that can hold Bitcoin.

Officials said in November the fund held $5 million in shares of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF and planned to invest an additional $5 million directly in Bitcoin, a move that could come in 2026, according to Cointelegraph.

Other states are moving on to reserves and taxes. Arizona lawmakers introduced SB 1044 to exempt virtual currency from taxation and SB 1045 to bar local taxes or fees on blockchain node operators.

A related resolution, SCR 1003, would exclude virtual currency from property tax, CryptoNews reported.

The node bill could pass through the legislature, while broader exemptions would require voter approval in November 2026.

Arizona already treats airdrops as gifts for state income tax since December 2022, allows gas fees to be deducted in gains and losses, and permits state agencies to accept crypto through approved providers.

The state also has a law allowing the government to claim ownership of abandoned digital assets after three years.

Arizona’s Bitcoin reserve push has been contested. A prior bill was vetoed in May, then a revised version was later passed by the state Senate 16–14, CryptoNews reported.

Federal tax debates return to Capitol Hill

Congress is preparing to revisit digital asset taxation after years of relying on 2014 IRS guidance.

In December, Representative Max Miller said a draft bill to modernize digital asset taxation could move before the August 2026 recess, according to CryptoNews.

More recently, bipartisan House lawmakers released a discussion draft that would exempt small stablecoin payments from capital gains tax and allow a five-year deferral on staking and mining rewards.

Through 2026, the Senate’s market structure path, GENIUS rulemaking, CFTC appointments, and state-level efforts will set the tone for how digital assets are supervised, traded, and taxed.

Investors and companies will be watching committee calendars, rule proposals, and November ballots for the next signals.

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