Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan told analysts on Wednesday that up to $6 trillion in U.S. bank deposits could move into stablecoins if interest is permitted, citing Treasury Department studies. On Jan. 9, the Senate's latest draft would ban passive yield on stablecoin balances while allowing activity-based rewards, and a planned committee markup was later postponed.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry has scheduled a January 27 markup for the CLARITY Act, a bipartisan crypto market structure bill, with full text set for release on January 21. The proposal seeks to define oversight roles for the SEC and CFTC, address areas like DeFi and stablecoin yields, and strengthen U.S. leadership while enhancing consumer protection. Lawmakers including John Boozman, Cynthia Lummis and Paul Atkins have highlighted the need for regulatory clarity and a consistent framework for digital assets.

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev reiterated his support for the U.S. Senate's comprehensive crypto market structure bill in a Wednesday post on X, even after a planned markup was postponed. The Senate Banking Committee pulled its scheduled Thursday session late Wednesday following Coinbase's decision to withdraw support over concerns about tokenized equities, DeFi restrictions, and stablecoin reward limits.

In 2026, privacy-focused cryptocurrencies have outperformed the broader market, with 14 of 18 tracked tokens now holding market capitalizations above $100 million and notable weekly gains across the sector. Monero, Zcash, Dash, Decred, Litecoin, and Pirate Chain have led the advance, with Monero’s valuation near $12.9 billion and Pirate Chain's ARRR jumping about 168% over seven days. Regulatory shifts in the EU and Dubai, along with growing concerns over on-chain surveillance, have coincided with rising demand for privacy technologies like Ring Signatures, Stealth Addresses, zk-SNARKs, and MimbleWimble.

The Senate Banking Committee scheduled a CLARITY Act markup for January 15, with amendment discussions expected later in the month. Draft provisions span SEC/CFTC roles, DeFi oversight, and stablecoin incentives, while institutional sentiment improves as Bitcoin nears the $100,000 threshold. The committee's direction will shape market structure and adoption expectations.

New readings show inflation still above the Fed’s 2% goal, with November wholesale prices up 3% and December core CPI at 2.6%. Policymakers are assessing implications for 2026, and rates are widely expected to remain at 3.5%–3.75% later this month amid differing views on how quickly to cut without exacerbating pressures on lower‑income households.

On January 15, 2026, Russian lawmakers and executives from Sberbank reiterated that effective fraud prevention requires comprehensive regulation of the country's cryptocurrency market. A new draft law based on the Central Bank's policy, which includes a 300,000 ruble annual limit for non-qualified investors, is expected to be adopted by July 1, 2026. Officials argue that legalizing domestic exchanges and introducing clear rules would help block channels used to withdraw stolen funds and reduce the impact of fraudulent schemes.

On 15 January 2026, JPMorgan outlined an outlook in which institutional and corporate investors, rather than retail traders, play an increasingly dominant role in the crypto market. The bank estimates that digital assets drew nearly $130 billion in fresh capital during 2025 and expects inflows to persist or accelerate in 2026 as clearer U.S. regulations and large treasury buyers reshape the landscape.