Crypto markets price a CLARITY comeback

July 21, 2026

In partnership with

 

Reading time: 5 minutes

UK crypto hub ambitions run into a banking wall

Key points:

  • A cross-party parliamentary group is investigating whether UK banks impose disproportionate account restrictions, payment blocks, and transfer limits on crypto businesses and consumers.

  • The inquiry arrives ahead of the country’s new crypto licensing regime, raising questions about whether regulated firms can operate effectively without reliable banking access.

News - The UK’s Crypto and Digital Assets All-Party Parliamentary Group has opened an inquiry into the banking barriers facing crypto businesses and consumers.

Lawmakers will examine difficulties opening or retaining bank accounts, restrictions on crypto-related payments, transfer caps, and access to related services, including insurance. The review will also assess whether these controls are proportionate and how they affect investment, competition, innovation, and economic growth.

The APPG is accepting written evidence from banks, payment providers, fintech companies, crypto firms, and other stakeholders until August 31. It will then publish findings and recommendations for the government.

The numbers behind the scrutiny - Research published by the UK Cryptoasset Business Council in January found that banks blocked or delayed an estimated 40% of attempted transfers to crypto exchanges.

Eight of the 10 surveyed exchanges reported that more customers had experienced restricted transfers over the previous year, while 70% said banking friction had reduced their willingness to invest, expand, or hire in the UK.

Licensing cannot solve an access problem - The inquiry exposes a gap between the UK’s regulatory ambitions and the financial infrastructure available to crypto firms.

The FCA is expected to begin accepting authorization applications on September 30, while the broader crypto regime is scheduled to become mandatory in October 2027. However, licensing may offer limited practical value if approved businesses still struggle to maintain accounts or receive customer payments.

A central issue is whether bank controls distinguish regulated platforms from higher-risk operators rather than applying blanket restrictions.

CLARITY hopes surge before the bill text arrives

Key points:

  • Reported White House agreement on an ethics package revived the stalled CLARITY Act, but no updated bill text or public details have emerged.

  • Polymarket odds climbed from 32% to about 43%, while Bitcoin rose above $66,000 as legislative optimism joined a broader risk-on rebound.

News - Reports that the White House accepted an ethics provision for the CLARITY Act revived hopes that the crypto market-structure bill could advance before the Senate’s August recess.

The proposed language was reportedly sent to certain Senate Republicans after ethics restrictions became the final major obstacle in negotiations. Democrats had demanded safeguards limiting how presidents, senior officials, and their families could profit from crypto while in office.

However, the agreement remains preliminary. Democrats have not seen the updated bill text, no revised language has been released publicly, and officials have not detailed the package.

The probability moved first - Polymarket traders raised the bill’s implied 2026 passage odds from 32% on Friday to roughly 43% on Monday.

Bitcoin traded above $66,000 at a five-week high, while ether, XRP, and other major tokens also advanced. Still, traders cited rebounding Asian semiconductor and AI stocks as the rally’s main driver, suggesting the CLARITY reports added to, rather than fully caused, the risk-on move.

The Senate math still matters - The bill needs 60 votes, while Republicans hold 53 seats. That leaves at least seven Democratic votes necessary for passage.

Any ethics compromise could remove a major objection, but updated text, Democratic demands for illicit-finance safeguards, and sufficient bipartisan support remain outstanding. Until those pieces appear, the market is pricing renewed possibility, not a completed legislative breakthrough.

Trade What Happens Next

From elections and inflation to sports, tech, and more, Kalshi lets you trade on the real-world events you already follow. Buy “Yes” or “No” contracts based on what you think will happen, then earn returns if you’re right.

Pick a market, make your prediction, and put your knowledge to work.

Bonus credit varies from $15 to $500. Terms apply.

Russia caps retail crypto while opening a trade route

Key points:

  • Russia’s State Duma approved a bill establishing a comprehensive framework for exchanges, brokers, asset managers, custodians, and other crypto market participants.

  • Non-qualified investors would face a 300,000-ruble annual purchase cap per intermediary, while crypto would remain banned for domestic payments but permitted in certain foreign trade settlements.

News - Russia’s lower house of parliament has completed the final readings of a bill establishing the country’s broadest crypto market framework to date.

The legislation would create regulated categories for exchanges, brokers, asset managers, custodians, and exchange service providers under Bank of Russia oversight. Most provisions are expected to take effect on September 1, 2026, if the Federation Council approves the bill and President Vladimir Putin signs it.

Market participants would receive a transition period through July 1, 2027. Afterward, crypto transactions would generally need to pass through authorized organizations, while banks would be required to reject transfers linked to unauthorized exchanges.

Retail access comes with a ceiling - Non-qualified investors would be limited to 300,000 rubles, or about $3,800, in annual crypto purchases through a single licensed intermediary.

Qualified investors would receive broader access, while the central bank would decide which assets regulated platforms may offer. The framework also provides judicial protection for digital currency holders, including assets that were not previously declared.

Trading opens, spending stays closed - The bill does not lift Russia’s prohibition on using crypto to purchase goods and services domestically.

Instead, it preserves a separate route for digital currencies in foreign trade contracts and certain transactions involving mined crypto, securities, and digital assets. That distinction gives Russian companies a regulated cross-border settlement option while keeping the ruble as the country’s domestic payment standard.

XXI breaks up Tether’s all-in-one Bitcoin plan

Key points:

  • Jack Mallers stepped down as Twenty One Capital CEO to focus on Strike, which will remain independent after being removed from a proposed three-way merger.

  • New CEO Raphael Zagury is shifting XXI toward operating businesses, capital markets, and Bitcoin-backed lending rather than centering its strategy on additional BTC purchases.

News - Tether-controlled Twenty One Capital has scrapped its proposed three-way combination with Strike and Bitcoin miner Elektron Energy.

Mallers left the CEO role effective July 20 and will continue leading Strike, the Bitcoin payments company he founded. Elektron CEO Raphael Zagury has taken over at Twenty One, while discussions about a possible combination between XXI and Elektron remain underway.

Tether holds majority stakes in both XXI and Elektron, while Strike will continue as a standalone business.

The original bundle comes apart - Tether proposed the three-way combination in April, aiming to bring Bitcoin treasury holdings, payments, financial services, and mining into one public company.

Removing Strike narrows that plan considerably. Any future XXI-Elektron deal would involve two Tether-controlled companies and face additional review as a related-party transaction.

A treasury starts looking for cash flow - Twenty One’s revised priorities emphasize acquiring operating companies, expanding capital-markets capabilities, and developing loans backed by Bitcoin.

The change does not end its Bitcoin-only treasury policy. XXI still held 43,514 BTC, making it the second-largest corporate holder behind Strategy, according to BitcoinTreasuries.

However, the new strategy suggests that treasury size alone is no longer the company’s main operating thesis. Zagury’s mandate is to build revenue-generating businesses around the Bitcoin reserve rather than rely primarily on further accumulation.

Forget Nvidia and SpaceX - These 5 Stocks Could Soar Next

Everyone is watching SpaceX.

But Wall Street’s top-rated analysts are pointing to 5 different stocks right now.

MarketBeat’s Top 5 Stocks to Buy Now report reveals the names getting some of the strongest analyst support before the broader market catches on.

Interesting facts

  • Cardano’s tokens skip the smart-contract tollbooth: Cardano records native assets directly in its ledger, allowing ordinary token transfers to use the same UTXO machinery as ADA without executing a smart contract. Policy scripts still govern minting and burning, but basic circulation happens at the protocol level.

  • Every XRP Ledger fee disappears instead of finding a validator: XRP paid as a transaction cost is not awarded to validators or any other participant. It is permanently destroyed, turning the ledger’s anti-spam mechanism into a small, transaction-by-transaction reduction in XRP’s supply.

  • CryptoPunks began as a giveaway before becoming a status symbol: When CryptoPunks launched on June 9, 2017, 9,000 of its 10,000 algorithmically generated avatars were offered free to anyone with an Ethereum wallet, apart from the gas required to claim them.

Avoid Tax Season Scramble

Don’t wait until spring to scramble through deductions, documents, and expenses. BELAY’s experienced tax prep professionals can help you get organized before it turns into an emergency.

Download the free Personal Tax Prep Checklist to start today.

Top 3 coins of the day

Ondo (ONDO)

Key points:

  • ONDO’s first challenge of $0.395 failed, but buyers rebuilt from $0.34 and cleared the same resistance on a stronger second attempt.

  • MACD expanded positively as price held above the rising 9-period SMA at $0.369. Support sits at $0.395 to $0.40, while $0.408 to $0.41 is the next test.

What you should know:

ONDO’s first run at $0.395 failed, but the pullback to $0.34 rebuilt the setup rather than breaking it. Price then surged through the same ceiling on stronger volume, while the 9-period SMA climbed to $0.369 and MACD improved to 0.0100 versus a 0.0042 signal line. The second attempt arrived alongside Ondo Finance integrating products such as SPYon and CRCLon with the DTCC Tokenization Service, linking them to DTC tokenized security entitlements. Ondo Perps also enabled SPYon and QQQon as margin collateral for perpetual trading and reported more than $1 billion in seven-day volume. Holding $0.395 to $0.40 preserves the breakout, while $0.408 to $0.41 remains the immediate resistance test.

Ethereum (ETH)

Key points:

  • ETH completed its rebound from $1,830 and returned to the $1,944 to $1,950 ceiling, where the upper Bollinger Band now tests the rally’s staying power.

  • MACD remained bullish at 20.67 versus a 14.16 signal line. Support sits at $1,920 to $1,925, followed by the middle band near $1,885.

What you should know:

ETH’s recovery had already traveled a long way before reaching its latest decision point. Price climbed from roughly $1,830, reclaimed $1,900, and pressed against the upper Bollinger Band at $1,944 as MACD momentum expanded above zero. Volume improved during the final push, although it remained below the strongest spikes from the earlier July advance. The move coincided with reported withdrawals and staking of roughly $38 million in ETH, while more than $160 million in bearish positions were liquidated as the rally accelerated. A sustained close above $1,950 strengthens the case for $1,960, but rejection below $1,920 shifts attention toward the middle Bollinger Band around $1,885.

DeXe (DEXE)

Key points:

  • DEXE collapsed from near $41 to $12.30 across two 4H candles, breaking the $31 to $32 and $24 to $25.50 support zones on extreme volume.

  • RSI plunged to 23.90 as price fell far below the 9-period SMA at $30.83. Support sits at $11.20 to $12, followed by $9.80 to $10.80.

What you should know:

The chart stopped behaving like a correction once DEXE lost $31 to $32. Selling then accelerated through $24 to $25.50, dragging price to $12.30 and erasing most of July’s rally. The active 4H candle carried 583.8K DEXE in volume, the chart’s largest spike, while RSI collapsed to 23.90 and the 9-period SMA remained far overhead at $30.83. The breakdown also coincided with reported exchange inflows of roughly $6.8 million from large holders, adding to the visible supply pressure. Holding $11.20 to $12 could support stabilization, but losing that floor exposes $9.80 to $10.80. Any rebound first needs to reclaim $14.80 to $16.

How was today's newsletter?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.