Gillibrand Optimistic: Senate Agriculture to Advance Crypto Bill

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., is “very optimistic” the Senate Agriculture Committee’s ‍updated legislation to regulate cryptocurrencies will advance, even though Republicans have yet to reach a deal with Democrats.

“Senators have been working on a bipartisan basis for the last six months pretty intensely, and we have two different bills,” Gillibrand told CNBC in an exclusive interview.

One‍ piece ⁤of legislation is in the Agriculture Committee, which oversees the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the second piece is at the⁢ Banking Committee, which oversees the Securities and ⁤Exchange Commission⁣ and banking issues, she said.

“Because these ‍types of digital assets have some characteristics of both commodities and securities, you need⁣ regulation under both those committees,” Gillibrand said.

The Democratic senator⁣ is not a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, but has been involved in negotiations on crypto market structure.⁢ She explained that the two bills, which address different parts of crypto market structure, are being worked on simultaneously.

“I think both senators on the Banking and ag committee are working in a bipartisan way and in good faith,” she said.

On Wednesday night,the Senate Agriculture Committee released the updated legislative text, which builds ⁤on a previously released bipartisan discussion draft. The bill would give the CFTC new authority to regulate digital assets.

In a statement, the chairman of the committee, John Boozman, R-Ark., acknowledged that “differences remain on fundamental policy issues,” but that the bill “builds on our bipartisan discussion⁤ draft while incorporating input from stakeholders and represents months of work.”

“Although its unfortunate that we couldn’t ⁢reach an ⁢agreement, I am grateful for the collaboration that⁢ has made this legislation better,” Boozman said, adding that “it’s time we move this bill.”

Markup of the Senate Agriculture Committee’s legislation to regulate digital commodities is scheduled ⁣for Jan.27.

the Senate Banking Committee’s markup hearing on its draft text to regulate digital assets was scheduled for Jan. 15,but was postponed at‍ the last minute after⁤ opposition from the crypto industry,including coinbase.

When asked if she thinks the Senate Agriculture Committee’s hearing is also at risk of delay, Gillibrand told CNBC that there⁢ are still areas that need bipartisan resolutions, ⁣but she believes t

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand expressed confidence that Congress can address concerns about a potential loophole in the GENIUS Act, legislation designed to regulate stablecoins.President⁢ Donald Trump signed the bill into ⁤law in July 2025.

Responding to banking industry claims of a loophole, Gillibrand said she’s “optimistic that we can find some common-sense bipartisan language that satisfies everyone’s concerns on this issue.” She added, “I thought we had done that in GENIUS, but ⁣if it needs ⁣more work, we will keep working.”

Gillibrand⁣ explained that ‍the intent of the GENIUS Act was to allow the crypto industry to demonstrate responsible behavior while protecting consumers. Lawmakers aimed to prevent confusion between stablecoins and customary bank deposits, emphasizing that stablecoins aren’t FDIC insured. “We wanted to make sure that no consumer was confused about what a stablecoin⁤ is versus what a dollar sitting in a bank account is,” she said.

the law requires all stablecoins ⁢to be fully backed by U.S. dollars or equivalent assets.Gillibrand believes the compromise⁤ language reached in the GENIUS Act strikes a balance between fostering innovation⁣ and ensuring financial stability.