Perfect's Out, Patch Notes Are In: Ripple Tells Senate to Ship the CLARITY Act 🛠️

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse urged the U.S. Senate to advance the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act on July 22, amplifying a message from Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stu Alderoty that framed the legislation as a consumer protection measure. "Perfect can't be the enemy of good. Let's get this done!" Alderoty wrote on X, a line Garlinghouse endorsed alongside an identical phrasing. The bill is currently in active Senate negotiations, with seven Senate Democrats seeking stronger consumer and enforcement safeguards before any floor vote.

Alderoty outlined the package's core provisions: strengthened anti-money laundering requirements, expanded enforcement tools for law enforcement agencies, and new authority for state attorneys general. Garlinghouse reposted the thread, writing on X, "The Clarity Act is a consumer protection bill: strong AML/KYC, real tools for law enforcement and state AGs. Leave it on the table and consumers are left twisting in the wind with the status quo with no clear standards for bad actors to exploit (again)."

Lauren Belive, Ripple's global co-head of public policy, sharpened the institutional case, warning that rejecting the bill could leave digital asset users exposed to structural gaps similar to those that preceded the FTX collapse. Garlinghouse has previously described the CLARITY Act as the final legislative barrier to XRP achieving institutional scale, citing the potential CFTC commodity classification that would follow enactment and broaden institutional access.

Senator Cynthia Lummis has led the Republican defense of the framework, arguing that clearer federal standards sharpen regulator accountability, improve market oversight, and give compliant companies defined operating rules. The bill's proponents are positioning that message to draw Democratic votes by rebranding the package as a structural fix rather than a deregulatory step. The Senate's timeline for a floor vote has not been disclosed.