[News Brief] Apr 22, morning | U.S. Senate Banking Committee May Begin Markup of Crypto Market Structure Bill as Early as the 8th

U.S. Senate Banking Committee May Begin Markup of Crypto Market Structure Bill as Early as the 8th

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee is expected to begin the markup process for a Bitcoin and crypto market structure bill as early as the 8th, according to Bitcoin Magazine on the 7th (local time), citing reporting by Eleanor Terrett.

According to the report, a vote on the bill could take place next week, and sentiment among lawmakers so far is said to be broadly positive.

Markup is a legislative procedure in which a standing committee reviews, revises, and then votes on bill language. If this process begins, discussions in the U.S. Congress over crypto market structure regulation could enter a more substantive phase.

HarrisX Poll: 52% of Registered U.S. Voters Support the CLARITY Act

According to PANews, a HarrisX poll found that 52% of registered U.S. voters support the CLARITY Act, while only 11% said they oppose it.

Some 47% of respondents said they would be willing to vote for a candidate from the opposing party if that candidate supported the bill, even if their own party did not. Among crypto users, that figure rose to 72%.

By party affiliation, support stood at 55% among Democrats, 58% among Republicans, and 42% among independents. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said passage of the bill would benefit both parties, while Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev said momentum behind the bill is already in place.

The CLARITY Act aims to clarify regulatory jurisdiction and market structure for digital assets in the United States. Kara Calvert, Coinbase's vice president of U.S. policy, said the Senate Banking Committee could review the bill as early as next week and that at least 60 votes would be needed for Senate passage.

AWS Launches AI Agent Payment Infrastructure With Coinbase and Stripe

Amazon Web Services (AWS), in collaboration with Coinbase and Stripe, has reportedly launched an AI agent payment infrastructure called Amazon Bedrock AgentCore Payments. The core feature is enabling autonomous AI agents to use stablecoins to purchase online services such as APIs and web content in real time.

On the 8th, PANews cited CoinDesk as saying that the system is built on Coinbase's x402 protocol and Stripe's Privy wallet, and that it is initially focused on micropayments.

AWS described it as infrastructure for the “agent economy.” Over time, it plans to support larger-scale transactions, including hotel bookings, travel reservations, and merchant payments.

Coinbase said AI agents could eventually surpass humans in transaction volume. Stripe Privy also said that for agents to become meaningful economic actors, they need the ability to hold funds and make payments.

Warner Bros. Discovery has reportedly begun testing the system while exploring potential applications in live sports and entertainment content.

Anchorage Digital CEO: About 20 Banks and Big Tech Firms Waiting to Issue Stablecoins After GENIUS Act Passage

Nathan McCauley, CEO of Anchorage Digital, said that following passage of the GENIUS Act, around 20 banks and large technology companies are waiting to issue their own stablecoins through the firm.

According to PANews, citing CoinDesk on the 8th, McCauley said at the Consensus conference that Anchorage has secured all major licenses related to stablecoin issuance. He mentioned as clients banks seeking stablecoins for specific purposes and issuers with their own distribution channels.

He said stablecoins and digital assets are reshaping the very structure of money, and that agency commerce is altering the industry landscape in the process. He added that these changes are not yet fully reflected in the market.

The United States has already seen expanding discussions around bringing stablecoins into the regulatory mainstream, and his remarks suggest that issuance demand from financial institutions and major tech firms may be moving into an active business implementation stage.

U.S. Spot Bitcoin ETFs End 5-Day Inflow Streak With $277 Million in Net Outflows

Spot Bitcoin ETFs have reversed into net outflows after a five-trading-day streak of net inflows.

Odaily, citing SoSoValue data, reported that U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded total net outflows of $277 million on May 7 U.S. Eastern Time.

By single product, Fidelity's FBTC saw the largest net outflow, with $129 million leaving the fund in one day. FBTC's cumulative net inflows stand at $11.232 billion.

Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley's MSBT recorded the largest daily net inflow at $7.3461 million, while Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust BTC posted net inflows of $5.6709 million.

Total net assets of spot Bitcoin ETFs stand at $106.766 billion, accounting for 6.67% of Bitcoin's total market capitalization. Cumulative net inflows amount to $59.486 billion.

U.S. Spot Ethereum ETFs Record $104 Million in Net Outflows in One Day

According to Odaily, citing SoSoValue data, U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs recorded total net outflows of $104 million on May 7 U.S. Eastern Time. None of the 10 ETFs tracked posted net inflows.

The product with the largest outflow that day was Fidelity's FETH, which lost $62.2625 million. FETH's cumulative net inflows stand at $2.257 billion.

BlackRock's ETHA saw net outflows of $26.3107 million. The original report stated ETHA's cumulative net inflows as $9,160.

As of the time of writing, total net assets of spot Ethereum ETFs stood at $13.595 billion, representing 4.94% of Ethereum's total market capitalization. Cumulative net inflows were tallied at $12.083 billion.

Security Concerns Raised Over LayerZero Upgrade Structure and Multisig Operations

Security concerns have been raised regarding LayerZero Labs' base library contract upgrade structure and multisig wallet operations.

According to PANews, crypto opinion leader Fish Catfish said LayerZero Labs co-founder and CEO Bryan Pellegrino argued with security researchers in the ETHSecurity community Telegram group.

The main issue is that LayerZero Labs can upgrade the base library contract without a time delay, potentially enabling message forgery. Researchers pointed out that this structure could expose more than $3 billion in LZ OFT funds to risk.

Security researcher Vanteg claimed that major projects such as Ethena and Ether.fi had been using the base library contract until recently, and that $178 million in funds remain exposed.

On-chain data also reportedly showed that LayerZero Labs multisig signers had engaged in decentralized exchange trades, cross-chain bridging, and PEPE-related test transactions. Critics said this could heighten phishing risk by linking operational multisig keys to external activities.

Bryan Pellegrino responded that the transactions were indeed carried out by members of the multisig team, but said they were not meme coin trades and were instead tests involving PEPE under the LZ OFT token standard. He added that the relevant team members have been removed and that projects were advised to use fixed configurations directly rather than the default setup.

South Korea's National Assembly Passes Foreign Exchange Transactions Act Amendment to Include Overseas Transfers of Virtual Assets Under FX Oversight

South Korea's National Assembly has passed an amendment to the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, bringing overseas transfers of virtual assets under the foreign exchange management framework.

According to Odaily, the amendment requires businesses handling transfer services such as the buying, selling, and exchange of virtual assets between South Korea and overseas to register with the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Exchanges and custodians are also included among the entities subject to registration.

The amendment is intended to place overseas transactions using virtual assets, including stablecoins, under the supervision of foreign exchange authorities. Calls for better oversight have grown as cross-border fund transfers using crypto assets have expanded.

Penalties for violating foreign exchange transaction procedures for illicit gain have also been strengthened, from a previous maximum fine of 50 million won to up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 100 million won.

Coinbase Warns Some Users May Experience Performance Issues Due to AWS Service Outage

Coinbase said some users may experience degraded platform performance due to an AWS service outage.

According to panewslab.com, Coinbase customer support said the issue is under investigation and that further updates will be provided if necessary. The company also said user funds remain safe despite the disruption.

The incident highlights how cloud infrastructure outages can affect exchange service stability.

Tether Blacklists 371 Addresses on Ethereum and TRON Over the Past 30 Days

According to Wu Blockchain, citing BlockSec's USDT freezing tracker, Tether had blacklisted a total of 371 addresses across the Ethereum and TRON networks over the past 30 days as of May 7.

The frozen funds totaled about $515 million, including 329 addresses and about $506 million on TRON, and 42 addresses and about $8.73 million on Ethereum.

Tether has long restricted USDT transfers from certain addresses in connection with sanctions, hacks, or suspected illicit money laundering.