Goldman Sachs Chairman and CEO David Solomon has publicly endorsed the Clarity Act, separating one of Wall Street’s most powerful institutions from a broader banking coalition that has spent months fighting key provisions of the crypto market-structure bill.
‘I’m very supportive of moving the Clarity Act forward, so we can get some market structure in place and start to move the innovation process along,’ Solomon told Politico in an interview published July 23.
A Clear Split With JPMorgan and Banking Trade Groups
Solomon’s stance puts Goldman Sachs at odds with JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, who has been among the loudest critics of the bill’s stablecoin yield provisions. Dimon argued in a May appearance on Fox Business that allowing crypto firms to pay rewards on dollar-pegged tokens without bank-equivalent oversight would hand them an unfair competitive advantage. ‘The banks will not accept it that way,’ Dimon said at the time.
Beyond Dimon, a coalition of the nation’s top banking trade groups warned senators in May that a proposed compromise on stablecoin yield contained loopholes that would enable ‘evasion’ of the intended limits, cautioning that such rewards could pull deposits away from traditional lenders.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has countered that banks are lobbying to restrict stablecoin rewards precisely because those rewards threaten deposit-based business models. Crypto companies including Coinbase have for years offered rewards on certain stablecoin balances such as Circle’s USDC, with annual yields ranging between 3 and 5 percent, significantly above what traditional savings accounts typically offer.
What the Clarity Act Would Do
If passed and signed into law, the Clarity Act would formally legalize most cryptocurrency activity in the United States, classifying the majority of crypto assets as non-securities and placing them outside the purview of the SEC. The bill also includes provisions protecting decentralized software developers and addresses the practice of offering yield on stablecoin balances, a practice that was broadly codified following the passage of the GENIUS Act last year.
Solomon acknowledged the legislation is imperfect, telling Politico the bill ‘is not perfect’ and leaves plenty to debate, but argued its core value lies in creating ‘a level playing field to enhance market stability and allow these markets to develop appropriately.’ He also suggested the framework could attract more institutional participants into crypto markets, a stated priority for Goldman Sachs.
Senate Path Remains Uncertain
Solomon’s endorsement comes as Republican senators circulated updated bill text that preserves the core market structure framework while adding new ethics provisions restricting officials from participating in crypto ventures. Democrats have already rejected that ethics language as insufficient to address President Donald Trump’s crypto dealings.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune has signaled the bill likely will not clear the chamber before lawmakers break for the August recess, though he said he still hopes to begin the floor process before that deadline. With disputes over stablecoin yield and ethics provisions both unresolved, the Clarity Act’s path to a final Senate vote remains open but uncertain.
