Welcome to the #36 issue of The Bitcoin Act, where every Tuesday and Sunday we track the legal and regulatory moves that actually shape Bitcoin, cutting through noise, narratives, and theater.

Now for today’s top stories:

🇯🇵 Japan Classifies Bitcoin as Financial Product
Japan’s cabinet approved a bill reclassifying Bitcoin as a financial product, paving the way for stronger rules from fiscal year 2027.

🇮🇷 Iran Accepts Bitcoin for Strait of Hormuz Tolls
Financial Times reports Iran will require ships to pay tolls in Bitcoin for sanctions-proof settlement.

🏛️ Bessent Urges CLARITY Act Passage
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calls on Senate Republicans to hold a markup on the CLARITY Act and send it to President Trump’s desk.

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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged Senate Republicans to hold a markup on the CLARITY Act and send it straight to President Trump’s desk, warning that Congress has already wasted half a decade on this critical framework.

Financial Times reported Iran may soon require ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz to pay tolls directly in Bitcoin, allowing vessels to avoid sanctions tracing.

David Sacks (President Trump’s former AI and Crypto Czar) said the CLARITY Act will deliver the same clear rules for Bitcoin that the GENIUS Act gave stablecoins, urging the Senate to pass it now so President Trump can sign it into law.

Japan’s cabinet approved a bill classifying Bitcoin as a financial product, moving it out of the Payment Services Act and paving the way for stronger regulatory treatment starting fiscal year 2027.

SEC Chair Paul Atkins said the SEC and CFTC are fully ready to implement the CLARITY Act the moment Congress passes it, echoing Treasury Secretary Bessent’s call for immediate market structure legislation.

U.S. Treasury announced a new initiative giving Bitcoin firms free access to the same high-level cybersecurity intelligence that traditional banks receive, strengthening the entire ecosystem.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is probing a token-gated gala for potential influence peddling, raising fresh concerns about political corruption and financial gain tied to crypto events.

European Central Bank endorsed centralizing supervision of major Bitcoin firms under the Paris-based ESMA watchdog, calling for unified EU oversight of large cross-border players.

Jacob Robinson (legal analyst) explained that English law still treats Bitcoin as property but currently denies conversion claims in theft cases, leaving victims with weaker remedies than in Canada or Texas.

White House study found that banning stablecoin yield would do very little to protect bank deposits, removing a major objection and clearing the path for the CLARITY Act to advance.

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🇬🇧 £4M – BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo donated £4 million to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party while the UK government pushes to ban all Bitcoin political donations. CoinDesk

🇧🇹 $18M – Bhutan moved another $18 million in Bitcoin, continuing to shrink its tracked holdings from a 2024 peak of nearly 13,000 BTC. The Block

🇺🇸 $12M – U.S. Secret Service froze $12 million in stolen crypto during Operation Atlantic, disrupting a global fraud network that hit victims in over 30 countries. The Block

🇺🇸 2.4 BTC – The U.S. government transferred 2.4 BTC ($177K) to Coinbase Prime, the latest move of seized Bitcoin from federal custody. Bitcoin News

⚠️ 50.9 BTC – Hacker stole 50.9 BTC ($3.7M) from Bitcoin Depot after breaching internal systems tied to corporate wallets. Bitcoin News

“Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will, within the limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add ‘within the limits of the law’, because law is often but the tyrant’s will, and always so when it violates the right of an individual.” — Thomas Jefferson

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