Lowenstein Crypto advises leading digital asset and cryptocurrency projects, exchanges, and trading firms. Our practice covers regulatory advice, transactions and structuring advice, investigations, and adversarial matters including commercial disputes, bankruptcy, and related litigation. As these markets continue their rapid growth and market participants continue to evolve and mature their businesses, we are providing this weekly digest as a resource that highlights and summarizes a selection of key recent legal regulatory developments.

Senate Unveils Digital Asset Market Structure Principles

On June 24, Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott, R-S.C., along with Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo.; Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.; and Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., released a set of principles outlining the foundation for a forthcoming digital asset market structure bill. The framework proposes statutory clarity to determine whether digital assets shall be classified as securities or commodities, defines regulatory jurisdiction between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and supports innovation through modernized rules. It also emphasizes appropriate oversight for centralized intermediaries, including anti-money laundering compliance and custody requirements. This proposal may serve as a Senate counterpart to the House’s CLARITY Act and a complement to the recently passed GENIUS Act. The Senate Banking Committee’s Crypto Market Structure Principles can be reviewed here.

Senate Banking Committee Holds Hearing on Digital Asset Market Structure

On June 24, the Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on digital asset market structure. In the hearing, industry leaders and lawmakers emphasized the need for comprehensive crypto legislation. Ryan VanGrack, Senior Vice President of Legal at Coinbase, urged Congress to distinguish clearly between primary digital asset issuances and secondary market transactions. VanGrack emphasized that “no amount of litigation or regulation can replace the clarity and direction that thoughtful, bipartisan legislation can provide.” He also recommended giving the CFTC authority over spot and derivatives markets for nonsecurities like Bitcoin, while leaving the SEC to regulate tokenized securities. Former CFTC Chairman Rostin Benham echoed the call for reform, warning that regulatory inaction “will only result in greater risk to our financial markets and investors.” He further urged lawmakers to increase agency funding and proposed the creation of a self-regulatory organization akin to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority or the National Futures Association. The hearing followed the release of the committee’s digital asset market structure principles. The Senate Banking Committee’s hearing and statements can be viewed here.

Proposed COIN Act Seeks to Block Crypto Conflicts of Interest

On June 23, Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., introduced the Curbing Officials’ Income and Nondisclosure (COIN) Act, which directly targets potential conflicts of interest by banning the President, Vice President, senior executive officials, members of Congress, and each of their immediate family members from issuing, sponsoring, or endorsing any digital asset. The COIN Act also requires officials to report digital asset transactions over $1,000, codifies crypto holdings as financial interests, and authorizes penalties including civil fines and up to five years in prison. This legislation is co-sponsored by U.S. Sens. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del.; Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.; Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz.; Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.; Andy Kim, D-N.J.; Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.; and Angela Alsobrooks, D-Md. It has additionally attracted support from several ethics advocacy groups. A link to Sen. Schiff’s press release can be found here, and a text of the bill can be found here.

Texas Creates Strategic Bitcoin Reserve

On June 20, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 21 into law, officially establishing the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (Reserve). With this bill, Texas becomes the first U.S. state to authorize the use of public funds to invest in Bitcoin. The reserve will be administered by the Texas Comptroller and guided by a three-member advisory committee of crypto experts. The bill permits investment only in digital assets with a market capitalization of at least $500 billion, which effectively limits the Reserve to invest solely in Bitcoin. The bill also mandates biennial public reporting requirements to ensure transparency. In addition to direct purchases, the Reserve may grow through airdrops, forks, investment returns, and public crypto donations. The text of the bill can be found here.

Arizona Crypto Reserve Bill Passes in House and Senate

On June 24, the Arizona Legislature voted 34-22 for a bill that allows the state to establish a Bitcoin and digital asset reserve fund. This comes after the state Senate, on June 19, voted in favor of the bill, which will become codified once signed into law by Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs. The bill will additionally allow proceeds from assets seized in criminal investigations to be added to the reserve. However, uncertainty remains as to whether this bill will become law. Hobbs has shown hostility toward proposed crypto legislation in the past and recently vetoed a state bill that would have allowed 10 percent of the state pension funds to be invested in Bitcoin. The text of the Bill can be found here.

Fiserv Announces Launch of Stablecoin

On June 23, Fiserv Inc., a global payments and financial technology company that serves approximately 10,000 financial institutions and 6 million merchants, announced plans to launch FIUSD, a USD-pegged stablecoin on the Solana blockchain, by the end of the year. The initiative is supported by partnerships with Paxos and Circle Internet Group Inc. (NYSE: CRCL) and will feature planned interoperability with PayPal to facilitate seamless transfers across platforms. Fiserv intends to integrate FIUSD into its existing banking and payments systems, and company leadership has stated that FISUD will have built-in capabilities such as fraud detection, risk controls, and real-time settlement. These features are designed to enable institutional oversight and compliance. Fiserv’s press release can be found here.

State of Wyoming Stable Token Commission Provides Update

On June 19, the Wyoming Stable Token Commission (WSTC) released an update and timeline memorandum for its launch of the Wyoming Stable Token (WYST), a stablecoin authorized by the Wyoming Stable Token Act of 2023. WYST aims to be the first state-issued stablecoin backed by U.S. Treasury securities, which in part will generate income for Wyoming public schools. In the update, the WSTC stated it anticipates the launch of WYST to be on August 20, 2025. The launch update and timeline memorandum can be found here.