Galaxy Research Director: Crypto Market Structure Legislation to Face Key Hearing Next Week, Bipartisan Lawmakers May Propose Amendments

Galaxy Research Director Alex Thorn noted in an X post on January 25 that a key hearing in the cryptocurrency market structure legislative process will take place next week. Senate Agriculture Committee Republicans have released a discussion draft of the *Digital Commodity Exchange Act*. The bill is expected to eventually merge with related legislation from the Senate Banking Committee to form a comprehensive *Cryptocurrency Market Structure Act*. Since the Senate Agriculture Committee oversees the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the draft focuses primarily on the digital commodity market—with its core provision granting the CFTC exclusive regulatory authority over the spot cryptocurrency market (including exchanges, traders, and brokers). The committee plans to hold a bill amendment hearing on Tuesday, January 27, where bipartisan lawmakers may propose changes. While the commodity-focused portion (including CFTC oversight of the spot market) is widely seen as less controversial than the securities-related aspects of crypto market structure discussions, the draft still carries a clear partisan tilt. It has not yet earned the endorsement of key Democratic negotiators, though it incorporates many terms previously agreed upon in bipartisan talks. This Senate Agriculture Committee text broadly aligns with market expectations, centering on establishing a CFTC-led regulatory framework for the digital commodity spot market. Compared to related topics under consideration by the Senate Banking Committee, this version has a narrower scope, lower political sensitivity, and fewer controversies.