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Hello Bitcoiners,
Laws move slower than markets. But they hit harder. This is issue #81 of The Bitcoin Act: your Tuesday and Sunday briefing on the legal and regulatory moves that actually shape Bitcoin.
Now for today’s top stories:
📜 CLARITY Act Hits the Floor
Senate Republicans released a final draft Sunday with 126 changes. Cloture vote is today.
⚖️ State AGs Want It Killed
A bipartisan group of state attorneys general urged a no vote, warning the bill strips states of power to prosecute platforms that lose your coins.
🔄 Democrats Counter Late Monday
Senate Democrats sent a counterproposal hours before the vote. Main target: ethics language they say still shields the president.
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USA
Final CLARITY Text Lands
Late Sunday, Senators Lummis, Boozman and Scott released a final draft of the CLARITY Act carrying 126 changes Democrats requested. It has not passed. A cloture vote, the procedural step to open floor debate, is today.
The draft exempts developers of wallet and self-custody software who never control user funds from registering as money transmitters, licensed businesses that move others' money. That protection is civil only, not criminal. Cloture still needs 60 votes today.
State AGs Say No
A bipartisan group of state attorneys general, led by New York's Letitia James, wrote to Senate Banking leaders Monday urging a no vote. They warn the SEC could preempt, meaning legally override, state securities and fraud enforcement.
Preemption fights decide who prosecutes the platform that loses your coins. Neither answer gives your Bitcoin back. Withdraw whatever balance you are leaving on an exchange for convenience and move it to cold storage.
Democrats Counter Hours Before Vote
Senate Democrats sent a counterproposal to Republicans late Monday night. Their chief complaint: the revised ethics language still blocks state attorneys general from directly suing the president and lets the Office of Government Ethics waive restrictions for senior officials.
White House adviser Patrick Witt said at a Monday event that if any changes remain, they amount to punctuation. Banking groups are still pushing for tighter stablecoin yield rules, and the Indian Gaming Association opposes expanded CFTC authority over prediction markets.
Worldwide
🇰🇷 Korea's 2027 Tax Stands
A petition to postpone Korea's 22% tax on coin gains, due January 1, 2027, passed 50,000 signatures and goes to committee. The finance minister nominee says the tax starts on schedule.
🇮🇷 Iran Oil Funds Seized on Binance
The DOJ filed a civil forfeiture suit to seize $61 million in Iranian oil proceeds. Two Chinese firms allegedly routed funds via Binance to the IRGC, a US-designated terrorist group. Unproven in court.
🇫🇷 France Details Its Kidnapping Response
The Gendarmerie published its strategy against coin-holder kidnappings: GIGN assault teams, cyber investigators tracing ransoms live, and unmixing stolen funds.
🇲🇽 300 GPUs Seized in Puebla Mountains
Mexican authorities raided a hidden mining site in Tlaola, Puebla, seizing 300 GPUs, 80 medium-voltage terminals and eight satellite antennas. It is the fourth found nearby since 2025. Investigators suspect stolen hydroelectric power.
🇬🇧 Revolut Discloses Customer Data
Revolut says it disclosed customer data after fraudulent requests from a real government email domain. Its notice lists passports, driver's licenses and addresses; selfies, statements and transaction histories, including Bitcoin activity, may be included.
🇬🇧 Lords Debate Ban on Coin Donations
The House of Lords opened debate Monday on the Representation of the People Bill, which would ban coin donations to parties and cap overseas donors at £100,000 yearly.
🇮🇹 UniCredit Eyes Custody Under MiCA
Italy's second largest bank is selecting a technology provider to custody and trade coins, enabled by MiCA, the EU regulation that gives banks a license path into the market. Nothing is launched yet.
🇮🇳 India Pilots Tokenized Bonds
SEBI and the Reserve Bank launched Demat 2.0. REC, Larsen & Toubro and IIFL issued $107 million of corporate bonds on a private ledger run by state depositories, paid with wholesale digital rupee.
🇩🇪 Germany Drafts End of Tax-Free Bitcoin
The finance ministry's draft bill would tax gains on Bitcoin bought after December 31, 2026 at an effective 26.375%, no matter how long it is held. Coins bought earlier keep the one-year tax-free rule.
🇬🇧 FCA Weighs Exemption for Tokenized Gold
The UK's Financial Conduct Authority will propose to exempt tokenized gold from fund rules that restrict who can buy it. London handles roughly 70% of global gold trading volume.
Poll
The day the government bans cash to force a controlled digital currency on us, will you obey the rules or use Bitcoin to stay free?
Latest Poll Results
Sovereignty Move of the Week
Every week I drop one concrete, actionable answer to a legal or political question that actually affects your life as a Bitcoiner, focused on a specific, real-world action you can take.
This week: Is Bitcoin a commodity or a security?
How Bitcoin is classified determines who regulates it, how it is taxed, and whether holding it quietly stays legal. The answer is different in every country, and it is shifting right now in four major jurisdictions.
United States. On March 17, 2026, the SEC and CFTC jointly classified Bitcoin as a "digital commodity," not a security. The CFTC has jurisdiction. This is an agency interpretation, not a statute, so a future commission can reverse it. If the CLARITY Act passes, the classification becomes law.
United Kingdom. The UK does not call Bitcoin a commodity or a security. Under the Property Act 2025, it is personal property. HMRC taxes it under capital gains rules.
Australia. Australia passed the Digital Assets Framework Bill on April 1, 2026. Bitcoin itself is generally not a financial product under Australian law, but platforms that custody or trade it now need a federal licence.
Indonesia. As of January 10, 2025, oversight shifted from the commodity futures agency Bappebti to the financial services authority OJK. Bitcoin was regulated as a commodity. Under OJK Regulation No. 27 of 2024, it is now a "digital financial asset."
Got a legal or regulatory question you want answered next Tuesday? Hit reply and send it.
The Market Knows First: Bitcoin Law on Prediction Markets
📊 CLARITY Act signed into law in 2026? — 29% Polymarket
📊 Who will Trump pardon before 2027? Keonne Rodriguez — 15% Polymarket
📊 Federal capital gains taxes be cut by 2026? — 12% Polymarket
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Regards,
— Satoshi’s Lawyer
The information contained in this newsletter does not constitute legal advice.
