The Senate Banking Committee voted 15-9 on May 14 to advance H.R. 3633, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act. Bitcoin briefly jumped above $81,000 on the news, but by May 21 it was trading around $77,200 after testing $76,000 over the weekend. The policy win hasn't translated into sustained demand.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs bleed $648 million in a day
On May 18, US spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $648.6 million in net outflows. BlackRock's IBIT accounted for $448.4 million of that, ARKB $109.6 million, and FBTC $63.4 million. The outflows continued on May 19 and 20. The ETF-driven demand failed its first post-vote stress test.
First weekly outflow in seven weeks
CoinShares reported $1.07 billion in digital asset investment product outflows for the week ending May 18 — the first negative week in seven. Bitcoin products took the brunt, with $982 million in withdrawals. But it wasn't a clean sweep: XRP and Solana products saw inflows of $67.6 million and $55.1 million respectively. The US drove $1.14 billion of the outflows, while Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Canada saw inflows.
The bill now moves to the Senate floor. The House passed it in July 2025, and the Senate Agriculture Committee advanced related digital commodity legislation in January 2026. This vote was a procedural milestone, but the market reaction shows the disconnect between legislative progress and immediate price action. A floor debate hasn't been scheduled yet. For now, the bill's fate — and Bitcoin's — remains in play.
