Trump Shows ‘Strong Commitment’ to Clarity Act in White House Meetings With Crypto, Finance CEOs

President Donald Trump has held direct talks with top cryptocurrency and financial industry executives as he pushes for passage of the Clarity Act, a bill aimed at establishing rules for crypto regulation.

Crypto news outlet The Block reported on Aug. 20 that Trump held a press conference with technology and finance chief executives before inviting some attendees to the White House's Oval Office for separate meetings. Attendees at the press conference included Nasdaq Chief Executive Officer Adena Friedman, Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, Kraken CEO Arjun Sethi, Intercontinental Exchange CEO Jeffrey Sprecher, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse.

A person interviewed by The Block said Trump showed a "very strong commitment" to passing the Clarity Act.

Sergey Nazarov, co-founder of Chainlink, said the Oval Office discussion focused mainly on the Clarity Act. The group discussed key issues, which senators needed additional support and the legislative timetable after Congress returns from recess.

The Clarity Act would establish a federal regulatory framework for the US cryptocurrency market. The Senate is scheduled to hold its first procedural vote on Sept. 15.

Disputes over the bill remain unresolved. Banks and crypto firms are at odds over how stablecoin rewards should be treated, while concerns about illicit fund flows and Trump's own potential crypto conflicts of interest remain variables.

Lawmakers are also debating conflict-of-interest provisions for public officials. Trump is reviewing an amendment jointly introduced by Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego and Republican Senator Thom Tillis. The amendment would bar public officials and their spouses from issuing or endorsing digital assets and would allow state attorneys general to enforce the provision.

Nazarov added that conflict-of-interest provisions were not discussed separately during the Oval Office meeting. A strategic Bitcoin reserve was mentioned, but there was no discussion of concrete next steps.

Summer Mersinger, chief executive of the Blockchain Association, said the presence of traditional financial infrastructure companies such as Nasdaq and Intercontinental Exchange alongside emerging crypto exchanges was a symbolic sign of where the market is headed. She added that the press conference had revived industry momentum behind passage of the Clarity Act.