Crypto Stocks Rebound After CLARITY Act Setback as Bitcoin Tops $80K

Crypto-linked equities staged a sharp rebound on Friday, reversing losses triggered by the Senate's failure to advance the CLARITY Act earlier in the week. Strategy led the rally with gains exceeding 13%, while Coinbase and American Bitcoin each climbed approximately 11%. Robinhood added nearly 9%, and broader crypto exposure names such as Circle, asset manager Strive, and Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms posted gains between 5% and 7%, according to Yahoo Finance data.

Bitcoin mirrored the equities recovery, rising roughly 5% over 24 hours to trade near $80,800 at press time, according to CoinGecko. The rebound comes after a steep selloff following the Senate's Sept. 15 vote, which saw Coinbase and Circle drop about 10%, Strategy and Strive fall around 5%, and American Bitcoin decline roughly 8%. The CLARITY Act, a market-structure bill aimed at defining regulatory jurisdiction over digital assets between the CFTC and SEC, stalled amid partisan disagreement over stablecoin yield provisions and other provisions.

Despite the legislative setback, US regulators have begun advancing crypto-related initiatives under their existing authority. On Thursday, the CFTC issued no-action relief for passive software providers and submitted a crypto market regulatory proposal for White House review via a "prerule" filing. The SEC simultaneously moved to temporarily ease requirements for platforms facilitating onchain trading of tokenized securities, signaling that federal agencies remain willing to clarify the regulatory landscape even without congressional action.

Market participants are now watching whether the CLARITY Act can be revived before the end of the session, though political momentum appears limited. The coordinated agency actions suggest that incremental regulatory progress on digital assets will continue regardless of the bill's fate, providing a tailwind for crypto-exposed stocks that have grown increasingly sensitive to Washington policy signals.