Is the Market Underestimating It? Interpreting the Upcoming CLARITY Act

Author: Haotian

The market currently underestimates the CLARITY Act, much like it initially underestimated the GENIUS Act. Fortunately, a year after its enactment, the GENIUS Act has delivered results. We can extrapolate what the CLARITY Act might bring after its passage.

--Actual Changes One Year After the GENIUS Act.

The GENIUS Act has pulled stablecoins from the gray area into a formal regulatory framework, directly resulting in two major changes:

First, the issuing entities have shifted from a "dual oligopoly" to a diverse ecosystem. Tether launched compliant USAT to fill the gap in the U.S., while Circle, Paxos, Ripple, and BitGo received federal charters from the OCC; SoFi and Revolut introduced white-label stablecoins, and over 140 institutions, including Visa, Mastercard, and Stripe, launched the Open USD Alliance. Projects related to the Trump family, such as USD1, quickly scaled to billions of dollars.

Second, the scale and trading volume have significantly increased. The total market cap of stablecoins rose from approximately $211 billion in early 2025 to a new high of $322 billion in June 2026. USDT and USDC continued to expand their market share, while emerging stablecoins like USDS, USD1, USDe, USDG, PYUSD, and RLUSD also rapidly grew. The overall annual trading volume has reached trillions of dollars, with real payments, cross-border settlements, and RWA use cases continuing to increase.

These are quantifiable and observable changes that demonstrate how clear regulation can quickly translate into market growth and institutional adoption.

--What the Crypto Industry Might Look Like One Year After the CLARITY Act Passes.

The CLARITY Act is a broader digital asset market structure bill than GENIUS, focusing on clearly defining the classification of digital commodities and securities, the regulatory division between the CFTC and SEC, and protections for exchanges and DeFi. It complements GENIUS: one regulates stablecoin issuance, while the other sets the rules for the entire market.

If passed in 2026, the following changes are expected a year later:

1. Continued Acceleration of Stablecoin Growth. Building on GENIUS, the overall market certainty will further stimulate institutional adoption. By 2027, the total market cap of stablecoins is expected to rise from the current $320 billion, potentially surpassing $1 trillion in an optimistic scenario. New issuing entities will continue to emerge, and the proportion of real use cases like RWA settlements and on-chain payments will increase, leading to new trading volume records.

2. Mainstream Assets Like BTC, ETH, and SOL Gain Legal Commodity Status.

The CLARITY Act clearly defines these assets as digital commodities and allows banks to treat related activities as "financial activities." Banks can hold BTC, ETH, SOL, etc., directly on their balance sheets rather than only through ETFs. Mechanisms like ETH staking will also be more smoothly legalized, leading to massive inflows of institutional capital.

3. New Growth for Perp DEX and RWA/DeFi.

Perp DEXs like Hyperliquid and Lighter will gain regulatory certainty, accelerating the development of innovative products like RWA perpetual contracts. At the same time, the lowered barriers for RWA on-chain will drive DeFi into a second wave of growth, deeply integrating traditional finance with the on-chain ecosystem, bringing new liquidity and use cases.

In summary, the performance of the GENIUS Act one year later has already proven that once the CLARITY Act is passed, its impact will be broader than many can imagine. Meanwhile, the market is underestimating the potential of the CLARITY Act, but this presents us with an opportunity window to position ourselves for the future, doesn't it?

This content is provided for general informational purposes only and doesn't constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Any events, rewards, online promotions, or related information mentioned herein should not be considered a recommendation, solicitation, or invitation to purchase, sell, trade, or otherwise deal in any crypto assets. Crypto assets are highly volatile and may result in loss. The availability of WEEX services, products, and related events may vary by region. You are responsible for ensuring that your participation is in accordance with applicable local laws and regulations.