The amendment to the "CLARITY Act" applying securities laws prohibiting insider trading to crypto assets has been passed

BlockBeats News, May 15th: Senator Cynthia Lummis proposed an amendment during the Banking Committee hearing on the "CLARITY Act," calling for the application of existing securities laws prohibiting insider trading to crypto assets, particularly "ancillary assets."

BlockBeats Note: "Ancillary assets" refer to a category defined in the bill that includes crypto assets related to securities but not fully considered securities.

Senator Warren opposed the amendment, stating that the amendment only addresses a surface-level issue. The bill itself creates a larger loophole—many assets with security-like features would not be classified as "ancillary assets" and thus would be completely exempt from insider trading rules. While I support combating all forms of insider trading, this patch is far from enough to solve the problem. It gives the public a false sense of security, leading them to believe they are immune to insider trading in the crypto space—when in fact, they are not safe. Insiders will still find loopholes. Therefore, I urge my colleagues to vote against it.

The amendment was passed with 18 votes in favor and 6 against. The "Cryptocurrency Market Structure Act" (i.e., the CLARITY Act) is currently undergoing a line-by-line vote on the proposed amendments.