CLARITY Act Section 1960 Issue To Be Fixed ‘Very Soon,’ Says White House Crypto Advisor

• Section 1960 could limit safe harbor protections for software developers involved in crypto-related infrastructure.
• Senators Cynthia Lummis and Thom Tillis have signaled potential alignment on developer protections.
• Crypto markets moved higher on Monday amid growing optimism that the CLARITY Act could advance in May.

Patrick Witt, the White House advisor for digital assets, said on Monday that the final hurdle in the path to getting the CLARITY Act past the finish line is Sector 160, a federal money-transmitting statute that would deny safe harbor protections to software developers who knowingly facilitate money laundering.

“This issue should be resolved very soon,” Witt said in a post on X, adding that software developer protections are “essential” to bring builders back to the U.S. 

Coin Bureau reported that Senator Chuck Grassley is expected to weigh in this week on proposed changes to Section 1960. It said that the debate has become one of the final sticking points in CLARITY Act negotiations. The report added that lawmakers are pushing to ensure decentralized finance (DeFi) protections do not limit the government's ability to police illicit crypto activity ahead of a potential Senate markup.

What Is Section 1960 In The CLARITY Act?

The Section 1960 dispute centers on how broadly the statute applies to non-custodial code. Senator Lummis has said that applying the provision without carve-outs could effectively criminalize Americans offering non-custodial crypto asset software services. 

Senator Tillis, who had previously requested more time on other provisions, told reporters he is "generally in support" of Lummis's framework on the developer protection issue. 

Lummis said at the Bitcoin Conference 2026 that the Senate Banking Committee will mark up the CLARITY Act in May, after missing an April target. "We are gonna markup the CLARITY Act in May," she said. 

"We are gonna get it to the finish line. We are gonna have the market structure that allows us to innovate." The delay from April came after Senator Thom Tillis requested additional time to review key provisions around stablecoin regulation and yield structures. 

Crypto Market Rallies On CLARITY Momentum

Crypto markets rose on Monday as the legislative timeline came into clearer focus. Bitcoin’s price rose over 2% in the last 24 hours to cross $80,300. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the apex cryptocurrency rose to ‘bullish’ from ‘neutral’ over the past day. Chatter stayed at ‘normal’ levels. 

Dogecoin (DOGE) outperformed Bitcoin, with DOGE’s price up 2.4% in the last 24 hours. Ethereum (ETH) and Binance Coin (BNB) also gained over 1% among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Ethereum’s price rose 1.5% in the last 24 hours, while BNB’s price rose 1.1%. 

The crypto market was also supported by renewed tensions between the U.S. and Iran, which led to a surge in oil prices. The United States Oil Fund (USO) rose over 3% to $147 on Monday afternoon. Retail sentiment around the ETF rose to ‘bullish’ from ‘neutral’ territory, accompanied by ‘normal’ levels of chatter.

Read also: BlackRock's IBIT Drew $2.3 Billion In April Flows Despite Negative Year-to-Date Return

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com