Welcome to issue #47 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:

🏛️ Minnesota Enacts Bank Bitcoin Custody
Governor Walz signed HF 3709 allowing Minnesota banks and credit unions to offer Bitcoin custody from August 1, 2026.

📜 House Agriculture leaders press Trump to appoint CFTC commissioners
Senate Banking Committee advanced the CLARITY Act, giving the CFTC oversight of spot Bitcoin trading. House leaders urged Trump to fill vacant CFTC seats.

👀 House Pushes Permanent CBDC Ban
Republicans are amending a housing bill this week to permanently block the Federal Reserve from issuing a CBDC.

Governor Tim Walz signed Minnesota House File 3709 into law this month. Effective August 1, 2026, the bill lets state-chartered banks and credit unions hold virtual currencies, including Bitcoin, for customers in a non-fiduciary capacity. Institutions must keep client assets fully segregated from their own, maintain written risk management and security policies, and give the Minnesota Commissioner of Commerce at least 60 days’ written notice before offering the service. They cannot trade, lend, or invest customer assets. A companion bill, SF 3868, bans new virtual currency kiosks statewide from August 1 and requires removal of existing ones by December 31.

For a self-custody Bitcoiner, skip Minnesota’s new bank custody option entirely. Not your keys, not your coins! It removes sovereignty and defeats Bitcoin’s main purpose. Plus, the companion ATM ban eliminates a key cash on-ramp in Minnesota starting August 1. Most other states still allow them. You can also use P2P or no-KYC methods available nationwide to keep stacking sats without handing over your identity.

The Block

On May 14 the Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 to advance the CLARITY Act, the market-structure bill that would give the Commodity Futures Trading Commission primary oversight of spot trading in digital commodities such as Bitcoin. Two Democrats joined Republicans. The same day the committee acted, House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn Thompson and Ranking Member Angie Craig wrote President Trump urging him to nominate a full slate of five CFTC commissioners. Only Chairman Michael Selig currently serves; the other four seats are vacant. A complete commission would make future rules harder to overturn in court.

The bill remains a proposal and has not passed either chamber in final form, so it changes nothing for your Bitcoin today. If enacted, the bill would give the CFTC clear authority over spot Bitcoin trading and include explicit safe-harbor protections for self-custody and non-custodial software. A full five-member CFTC commission would also make those rules harder to challenge in court.

The Block

House Republicans are amending the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act to impose a permanent ban on the Federal Reserve issuing a central bank digital currency, a government-issued digital dollar that would allow direct transaction tracking. The Senate version of the housing bill only prohibits a CBDC until December 31, 2030. The House is expected to vote on its amended version this week. If it passes, the bill returns to the Senate. Separately, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer’s Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act passed the House in July 2025 but has not cleared the Senate.

A central bank digital currency has no connection to Bitcoin and would not affect sats you already hold in self-custody. But, a permanent ban would close one potential future surveillance channel for fiat dollars. The housing bill must still pass the Senate and reach the president’s desk; the Emmer bill faces the same hurdle. No action is required on your Bitcoin. Continue stacking and holding in self-custody without reference to CBDC timelines or housing legislation.

Cointelegraph

🇯🇵 Japan pushes national AI and onchain finance system
Japan’s LDP approved a proposal for an AI and blockchain financial system with tokenized deposits and yen stablecoins. Sovereign onchain rails are advancing.

🇦🇪 Abu Dhabi sovereign fund keeps buying Bitcoin via ETF
Mubadala raised its BlackRock IBIT stake to 14.7 million shares worth $566 million. A major sovereign is steadily accumulating Bitcoin exposure.

🌍 Bitcoiners seek relocation and second passports
Katie Ananina outlined top jurisdictions for Bitcoiners relocating or securing second passports amid tightening rules. Geographic diversification hedges single-country risk to your stack.

🇮🇷 Iran launches Bitcoin insurance for Hormuz Strait
Iran introduced “Hormuz Safe,” a Bitcoin-paid maritime insurance platform for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Bitcoin is settling real trade under geopolitical pressure.

🇧🇹 Bhutan faces questions over Bitcoin reserve drawdown
Bhutan’s sovereign fund claims it does not recall selling Bitcoin after onchain data showed holdings falling sharply. Nation-states get no trust exemption.

🇬🇧 UK Bitcoin advocates release privacy toolkit
Bitcoin Policy UK published a practical toolkit to counter expanding state surveillance and tracking. Western governments are tightening digital controls.

🇬🇧 UK pushes tax relief for Bitcoin payments
Bitcoin Policy UK also called for capital gains tax exemption on Bitcoin used for everyday purchases, matching proposed stablecoin treatment. Usage-based tax rules reduce friction.

🇨🇳 China joins crackdown on pig-butchering scams
China participated in a Dubai operation that arrested 276 suspects and closed nine pig-butchering centers. Bitcoin is frequently used in these frauds. Never send sats to unsolicited investment offers.

🇧🇷 Brazil bans bank from crypto trading over compliance failures
Brazil’s central bank fined Banco Topazio $3.2 million and banned it from foreign crypto trading for two years after due diligence lapses.

🇿🇦 South Africa extends comment period on crypto capital rules
South Africa pushed back the deadline on draft capital flow regulations that could restrict cross-border Bitcoin activity.

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. No theory. No fluff. Just the move.

This week: How to understand the CLARITY Act and its real impact on you?

The CLARITY Act cleared the Senate Banking Committee on May 14 but is still only a proposal. The 309-page bill would give the CFTC oversight of spot Bitcoin trading as a digital commodity and create safe harbors for certain decentralized protocols. For a self-custody Bitcoiner the rules mostly target platforms, yet the definitions will decide which services remain viable.

1. Open the CahillNXT Clarity Map. Click through the interactive sections on “digital commodity,” CFTC authority, and safe harbors for non-custodial protocols. Focus only on how Bitcoin fits the commodity definition and which wallet or protocol activities stay outside new intermediary rules.

2. Download the Senate Banking Committee section-by-section summary PDF directly. Read pages covering digital commodities, mature blockchain systems, and safe harbors for software developers. Highlight any language that explicitly protects or excludes non-custodial Bitcoin holding and self-custody tools.

3. Go to the Congress website. Use the bill text search for the exact phrases “non-custodial,” “decentralized protocol,” and “digital commodity.” Note the definitions and any carve-outs that could interest you as a holder depending on your situation.

4. On the same Congress.gov page for H.R. 3633, click “Get alerts” and set notifications for status changes or amendments. Check the alert once per week and re-scan only the sections that interest you.

The Bitcoin Act is also preparing an AI bot to answer your basic questions on laws and legal news!

Got a legal or regulatory question you want answered next Tuesday? Hit reply and send it.

📊 Americans receive tariff stimulus checks before 2027 — 10% Kalshi

📊 CLARITY Act becomes law before August — 57% Kalshi

📊 Trump pardons Roger Ver this year — 15% Kalshi

📊 CLARITY Act signed into law in 2026 — 64% Polymarket

📊 Trump eliminates capital gains tax on Bitcoin by Dec 31 2026 — 6% Polymarket

The first people to open and read this newsletter can claim 21 sats! Learn interesting things and earn sats while you’re at it! 👇

“Freedom is indivisible. As soon as one starts to restrict it, one enters upon a decline on which it is difficult to stop.” — Ludwig von Mises

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