US Senate committee rejects crypto conflict of interest rule for president

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has rejected an amendment to the CLARITY Act that sought to prevent conflicts of interest for the president and members of Congress regarding cryptocurrency. The measure, which would have banned these officials from participating in crypto businesses and mandated related disclosures, failed in a 13-11 vote during the bill's markup session. Senator Chris Van Hollen argued in favor of the amendment, claiming the Trump family has profited by billions of dollars from projects like World Liberty Financial (WLFI). He also alleged that the president's family benefited from memecoins such as Trump and Melania while ordinary investors suffered billions in losses. In response, Senator Bernie Moreno contended that the issue falls under the jurisdiction of the Judiciary Committee, not the Banking Committee, and dismissed the allegations as unproven. The committee is continuing to vote on other provisions of the CLARITY Act.