US Crypto Market Structure Bill Faces Major Delay—TD Cowen Predicts 2027 Timeline
Washington's crypto regulatory roadmap just hit a massive speed bump—and the detour could stretch for years.
According to analysts at TD Cowen, the long-awaited U.S. crypto market structure legislation is now likely to be delayed until 2027. That's a full election cycle away, pushing comprehensive federal rules into the distant horizon while the industry continues evolving at breakneck speed.
Why the holdup? Political gridlock, competing priorities, and the sheer complexity of drafting rules for a trillion-dollar asset class that refuses to sit still. Legislators are trying to build a regulatory framework while the foundation keeps shifting beneath them—meanwhile, institutional capital is already flooding in.
The delay creates a dangerous vacuum. Without clear federal guidelines, the industry faces a patchwork of state regulations while other jurisdictions sprint ahead with their own frameworks. It's the regulatory equivalent of watching your competitors install fiber optic while you're still untangling copper wires.
Market participants aren't waiting around. Major firms continue building infrastructure and products, betting that when regulations finally arrive, they'll be positioned to capitalize. The irony? The very innovation that makes crypto compelling also makes it legislatively slippery—every time regulators think they've got a handle on DeFi or tokenization, three new protocols emerge.
Here's the cynical finance jab: Wall Street spends billions lobbying for favorable rules while crypto gets stuck in committee purgatory—maybe traditional finance just prefers competitors who can't play on a level field.
The 2027 timeline isn't just a delay—it's a strategic reality check. The market will look completely different by then, potentially rendering today's legislative drafts obsolete before they even hit the floor. Either Washington catches up to the technology, or gets left watching from the sidelines as the future of finance builds itself elsewhere.
Lawmakers raise concerns about the participation of Trump’s family in the crypto industry
Following the current situation, Seiberg declared that there is sufficient time to pass the bill, arguing that if the bill receives approval from the relevant authorities as anticipated in 2027 and is implemented in 2029, then all the challenges faced will be resolved.
He also noted that the crypto community must understand that the presidential election has a great impact on the ultimate regulations. For Democrats, Seiberg noted that they need to grasp the fact that the conflict provision will not apply to US President Donald Trump.
Seiberg has also predicted that conflict-of-interest regulations will be a major challenge. To facilitate better understanding, he elaborated that there is a high likelihood that Democrats will strongly support rules that restrict senior government officials and their families, including Trump, from operating or owning cryptocurrency businesses. According to him, such conditions would act as a “nonstarter”, particularly for Trump, unless they were delayed for some years.
In the meantime, a reliable source highlighted that the US president generated around $620 million last July, derived from crypto-related activities connected to his family, including World Liberty Financial, a DeFi and stablecoin project.
Following this news, a thorough investigation was conducted, revealing that Trump, along with his three sons, was the co-founder of these activities.
The investigation also disclosed that the family made significant investments in American Bitcoin, a cryptocurrency mining and acquisition firm. Interestingly, this investment was made at a time when lawmakers began raising concerns regarding the TRUMP and MELANIA meme coins. It is worth noting that these meme coins were introduced just before Trump assumed the presidency of the United States.
“One possible way to address Trump’s concerns is by making the conflict of interest rule start three years after it becomes law,” Seiberg explained. “This WOULD push it beyond the next inauguration, which means it wouldn’t affect Trump at all. We think Democrats would only agree to this if the rest of the bill was also delayed for three years.”
Individuals express optimism about the passage of the crypto market structure bill soon
Crypto market structure legislation is perceived as a significant breakthrough in regulation, following the passage of the GENIUS Act, which marked the United States’ first major legislative step towards regulating stablecoins.
The primary objective of this legislation is to establish a straightforward system that outlines how relevant authorities in the country manage digital assets. This scrutiny will also include oversight by agencies and the classification of assets.
What has delayed the passage of this market structure bill is that the progress in the Senate stopped after the House passed its version of the bill last year. However, hope has been sparked in the ecosystem after it was confirmed that committees in the Senate are anticipated to hold discussions regarding the bill later this year.
Notably, for a Senate filibuster to be successfully overcome, 60 votes are needed. This situation implies that Republicans will require backing from at least seven Democrats, even if each Republican decides to support the bill. In reality, Seiberg claimed that there is a possibility that they might require about eight or nine Democratic votes, as some Republicans have demonstrated a likelihood of opposing this legislation.
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