The United States Senate passed a comprehensive housing affordability package Monday night, and nestled inside its pages is a clause that could forever alter America’s digital currency landscape: a legislative ban on a Federal Reserve-issued central bank digital currency until the end of 2030.
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act passed the Senate 85-5, with Republican leaders insisting that the CBDC restriction be included alongside one of the most bipartisan laws in years. The House was set to vote as early as Tuesday, putting the package on a direct path to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature.
The bill’s language is broad: through December 31, 2030, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or any Federal Reserve bank may not issue, develop, or circulate a central bank digital currency, either directly or indirectly.
It specifically protects private stablecoins, excluding any “open, unauthorized, and private” dollar-denominated asset.
In January 2025, Trump laid the political groundwork for the ban by signing an executive order prohibiting his administration from engaging in any CBDC activities, claiming that it would jeopardize “the stability of the financial system, individual privacy, and the sovereignty of the United States”.
Kevin Warsh, the new Fed Chair who succeeded Jerome Powell, has labeled a US CBDC a “bad policy choice,” putting the Fed and the White House on the same page for the first time.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market is not celebrating. Bitcoin was trading near $62,000 Tuesday morning, down more than 3.7% on the day, as the Nasdaq tech selloff spread to digital assets.
BTC has now lost approximately half of its value since reaching an all-time high of more than $125,000 in July 2025, and some analysts believe the suffering is far from over: at least one widely watched technical indicator predicts another 15% loss before a bottom is formed.
Additional cryptocurrency Senate legislation is in the works.
The CBDC prohibition is the latest piece of a three-part legislative puzzle that the Trump administration has been putting together.
In July 2025, Trump signed the GENIUS Act, the first federal stablecoin law in US history, which requires issuers to maintain one-to-one reserves, make monthly reports, and acquire federal license. The bill effectively legalized private digital dollars at the same time that the government’s equivalent was being disallowed.
The third and most complex component is still pending.
The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, the industry’s long-awaited framework for deciding whether a crypto token is a security or a commodity, passed the Senate Banking Committee 15-9 on May 14 and was placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar on June 1.
According to Galaxy Research, the chances of passing this year are up to 60%, but time is running out.
The bill need at least seven Democratic votes to pass the Senate, and senators must act before August, when the legislative calendar effectively closes down ahead of midterm elections.
On June 18, Senator Bill Hagerty told Fox Business that he thought the Clarity Act would pass in the coming weeks. Without it, a major question — who controls cryptocurrency, the SEC or the CFTC — remains unanswered as the election cycle approaches.
If Trump signs the housing measure this week, it will be the most substantial governmental action against the government’s digital currency yet.
The message from Washington is becoming more difficult to misinterpret: private cryptocurrency has a place at the table, but the Fed’s version of a digital dollar does not.
