Bitcoin Magazine

Forget the Trump Bump — Bitcoin Would Be Fine Under Democrats, Says VanEck 

President Donald Trump may be the most crypto-friendly leader the U.S. has had so far — but what would happen to Bitcoin if the Democrats were to get back in power? 

Well, it wouldn’t necessarily be bad, according to asset manager VanEck’s Head of Digital Assets Research, Matthew Sigel. 

Speaking on CNBC Wednesday, the analyst also said that contrary to what many believe, ex-President Joe Biden wasn’t anti-Bitcoin. 

Republicans have repeatedly blasted Democrats as anti-crypto. Regulators under ex-president Joe Biden cracked down on digital asset companies, filing various lawsuits.  

“Biden was actually okay for Bitcoin,” Sigel said. “It’s the rest of cryptos that might have a problem [if Democrats get back in power].” 

He added: “With the ascendant socialist wing of the Democrat Party, I can tell you here in New York City that there are plenty who are reminded of why there is value in a decentralized, scarce asset that can’t be printed and spent on nonsense.”

President Trump campaigned on a ticket to help the digital asset industry and has passed a number of pro-crypto executive orders, including setting up a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve. 

The price of Bitcoin surged off the back of Trump’s 2024 victory and notched a new record last year. Despite some sluggish months in 2026, the leading digital asset began to rise again last week after the president urged lawmakers to get the long-awaited crypto Clarity Act over the line.

Bitcoin has jumped nearly 24% over the past seven days, touching as high as $81,160 this week before dropping again to its current price of $78,438. 

Pro-crypto lawmakers had hoped to pass the Clarity Act before Congress broke for August recess, but the vote slipped to September after Democrats balked at the latest draft. 

Some Republican senators have accused Democrats of deliberately holding the legislation back. 

The Clarity Act aims to create a legal framework classifying digital assets as securities, commodities or payment stablecoins, and determining which regulator oversees each.

Sigel’s comments echo those of Coinbase’s Chief Policy Officer, Faryar Shirzad, who said in July that crypto was “maybe the most bipartisan issue in Washington.”

Speaking about the delay in a vote on the Clarity Act, Shirzad said that while some lawmakers were holding back the long-awaited legislation, younger Democrats were for the framework. 

“A lot of the opposition is generational — so it is Democrats who oppose it — but I think younger members who understand the technology, understand that money is transforming how we should engage financially, how we need to adapt, and so it’s really a generational shift,” he said on The Hill’s Rising show. 

This post Forget the Trump Bump — Bitcoin Would Be Fine Under Democrats, Says VanEck  first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Mathew Di Salvo.

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Bitcoin Magazine

“We Need Clarity,” Says Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo

Ex-governor of New York and Democrat Andrew Cuomo has said lawmakers need to hurry up and get the “highly political” Clarity Act over the line. 

Cuomo, who is also the director of crypto exchange OKX, said that Democrats and Republicans were mainly locking horns over the ethics language in the bill. 

A number of lawmakers are hoping the Clarity Act — which would set in stone crypto regulation in the U.S. — gets passed before Congress departs for August recess. The bill was passed by the House of Representatives last year but sticking points remain. 

“We need clarity,” Cuomo said Thursday on CNBC’s Squawk Box. “Tell me the rules — I want to play the game fairly, but you have to tell me the boundaries, and that’s what the Clarity Act is all about.”

JUST IN: Former Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo says he thinks the Senate will resolve the Clarity Act ethics issues and pass the bill

"We need Clarity…the world is passing us by"

Pass it pic.twitter.com/oW40FdqHFr

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) August 6, 2026

Cuomo added that Democrats wanted to “raise in the campaign” the issue of the Trump family making money in crypto — and so were continuing to bring up the issue of ethics. 

A new draft of the Clarity Act started circulating that tackled the issue of ethics, banning government officials from promoting or making money from crypto. 

Some Democrats have criticized President Trump’s crypto business interests, with some alleging conflicts of interest as his family has made money from meme coins and the decentralized finance protocol, World Liberty Financial. The White House has always said there have been no conflicts of interest.

New language has been drafted, bipartisanly, adding changes to the ethics section of the bill. The White House is reportedly looking over it this week. 

Cuomo continued: “I think Democrats have to be a little careful because you want to talk about conflicts of interest, meanwhile you have Democrats who are buying stocks and they have inside information also.”

He warned: “And again, the world is passing us by. OKX, we’re doing gangbusters in Europe, and they’re passing regulations, and the technology is flourishing.”

“When you pass the regulations, and you allow innovation to develop, it takes off, and that’s what’s happening around the world, and it’s not happening here in the U.S. because of the Clarity Act,” he added. 

This post “We Need Clarity,” Says Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Mathew Di Salvo.

Bitcoin Magazine

Republicans Continue To Blame Democrats Over Stalled Crypto Clarity Act 

Republicans continue to criticize Democrats for dragging their feet when it comes to the long-awaited crypto Clarity Act. 

Speaking to Fox News on Tuesday, Senator Bill Hagerty said that the U.S. could not afford to fall behind the rest of the world with digital asset regulation. 

Lawmakers have just the next two days to vote on the Clarity Act before the Senate goes to recess. A bipartisan draft of the bill has been circulating among lawmakers but a number of Democrats are being pernickety over wording in the bill, say some Republicans. 

JUST IN: Senator Bill Hagerty tells Fox Business "We're going to have to pass the Clarity Act."

"There's no way that we can allow the U.S. to fall behind in the digital assets arena." pic.twitter.com/mYwfu0JEVU

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) August 4, 2026

“I think the problem is, will we be able to pass this with Democrats right now, or are they going to let midterm politics get in the way,” Hagerty said. 

He added: “Everything is moving digital around the world. The Genius Act was a major step forward to make certain that the digital dollar remains dominant in the world, but we need to follow it up with the remainder of the market. We’re going to have to pass the Clarity Act.”

Still, Republican majority leader John Thune told reporters on Monday that the bill would likely get at least an initial vote this week — despite lawmakers being inundated with other pieces of legislation. 

A number of major financial institutions, lawmakers and companies have thrown their weight behind the new bill, which was passed in the house of representatives last year with strong bipartisan support. 

Still, a number of Democrats have expressed concerns around the wording in the bill, saying in a statement that it needs work. 

Republicans have alleged that this is just Democrats playing politics, and that the bill has already had a lot of changes. 

Pro-crypto Senator Cynthia Lummis in particular has said that Democrats are deliberately holding back the bill. 

Speaking on Fox Business Tuesday, former Republican Senator Pat Toomey mentioned that it was urgent to get the bill passed this week. 

“I think it’s essential that the Senate pass this legislation this week,” he said. “The technology of the blockchain is very powerful — it has the ability to transform finance and I think other parts of our economy, but there needs to be legal clarity.”

The Clarity Act has been in a deadlock for much of 2026, partially because the banking lobby raised concerns over stablecoin yield. 

An updated bill of the Clarity Act was introduced in July addressing ethics concerns. It now bans government officials and their families from issuing or promoting crypto. 

If passed, the Clarity Act would create a regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency market.

This post Republicans Continue To Blame Democrats Over Stalled Crypto Clarity Act  first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Mathew Di Salvo.

Bitcoin Magazine

Younger Democrats Understand Clarity Act And Bill Should Pass, Says Coinbase’s Chief Policy Officer

The Clarity Act will likely get through despite some — older — Democrats holding it back, according to Coinbase’s Chief Policy Officer, Faryar Shirzad. 

Speaking on The Hill’s morning Rising show Friday, Shirzad said that crypto was “maybe the most bipartisan issue in Washington.” 

JUST IN: Coinbase Chief Policy Officer talks CLARITY ACT progress on The Hill:

""We've got ethics nailed down, we've got nominations nailed down, we've got a bipartisan bill on the substance, we should be good to go" pic.twitter.com/gMKuM7ujYs

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) July 31, 2026

He added that while some lawmakers were holding back the long-awaited legislation, younger Democrats got it. 

“A lot of the opposition is generational — so it is Democrats who oppose it — but I think younger members who understand the technology, understand that money is transforming how we should engage financially, how we need to adapt, and so it’s really a generational shift,” he said. 

“I think we’ll be on the winning end of that because right now there are about 67 million Americans who own crypto,” Shirzad added. “We’ve got ethics nailed down, we’ve got nominations nailed down, we’ve got a bipartisan bill on the substance, we should be good to go.”

Lawmakers are currently mulling over the latest draft of the Clarity Act, which aims to set in stone digital asset regulation. The latest draft bans officials and their families from issuing or promoting crypto. 

A new draft started circulating this month, banning officials and their families from issuing or promoting crypto — something opposition lawmakers previously had issue with. 

But some Democrats are still unhappy with the bill in its current form. A group of Democrats last week said in a statement that the bill in its current form falls short. 

The bill has been in a deadlock this year, partially because banking chiefs raised concerns over stablecoin yield and ethics concerns. 

Banking lobbyists have said that if crypto exchanges pay attractive yields to customers, banks could lose their deposit base. 

Shirzad previously said in an interview that the bill was an “extraordinarily bipartisan” piece of work. 

If approved, the bill would set in stone crypto regulation in the world’s largest economy.

This post Younger Democrats Understand Clarity Act And Bill Should Pass, Says Coinbase’s Chief Policy Officer first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Mathew Di Salvo.