Banks, crypto firms meet again at the White House on Tuesday

The White House is set to hold a closed-door summit between top banking and crypto executives on February 10 focused on stablecoin policy. The goal of this meeting is to find common ground between the two parties over issues that have stalled progress with the CLARITY Act.

Tension has been running high in Washington as traditional finance and crypto industry leaders struggle to reach a deal to pass the CLARITY Act. Incremental internal meetings are now being held by the White House to resolve differences between the two parties. Tuesday’s meeting will be the second of this nature, after little progress was made during the first on February 2.

The main point of contention between banking and crypto firms is whether stablecoin issuers should be allowed to pay interest to holders. This issue has been one of the biggest disputes preventing progress with the CLARITY Act.

Present at this meeting will be top executives from major banks like JPMorgan, who see yield-bearing stablecoins as an existential threat to their industry. Their main concern is that these assets will create a form of unregulated parallel banking, leading to capital flight from traditional banks. They argue that this will cause great damage to the overall U.S. economy.

On the other side of this argument are crypto firms, who believe that eliminating stablecoin interest payments will stifle innovation as global competition over decentralized finance is accelerating. Tuesday’s meeting will allow both camps to further present their arguments, as pressure mounts from the White House for a deal to be reached before the end of the month.

The CLARITY Act and tension between industries

The CLARITY Act (H.R. 3633) is a proposed bill by the U.S. Congress aimed at establishing a clear and comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets while still allowing for innovation. It was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in July of 2025, but has since hit multiple roadblocks in being passed by the Senate. While there is a large bipartisan appetite for clear digital asset regulation amongst Senate lawmakers, progress with the bill has hit gridlock over one key issue: the legal treatment of interest-bearing stablecoins.

Yield-bearing stablecoins are a type of digital asset typically pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar. Unlike traditional stablecoins, these digital assets generate passive income through interest payments to holders. Traditional financial institutions view these interest-bearing stablecoins as a risk to their balance sheets, as they offer much greater yield than traditional bank deposit rates. Crypto industry leaders argue that prohibiting stablecoin interest payments stifles innovation and severely limits consumer choice. They view the current position of traditional finance on this issue as a way for the banks to maintain their control over the U.S. financial system.

The White House steps in to mediate the tension

This issue over stablecoin policy has intensified competition between the two industries of banking and cryptocurrency, evolving into a battle over the future structure of the U.S. financial system. As both sides stand firm on their positions, the White House has emerged as the mediator through a series of closed-door meetings between industry leaders and the White House Cryptocurrency Committee. The first meeting was held last week, consisting of a mix of industry and trade group representatives, where they attempted to outline a compromise that could unfreeze the CLARITY Act. This meeting was more exploratory and laid the groundwork for Tuesday’s discussion. Unlike the first, high-level banking executives and crypto industry leaders are expected to be present for this next round of negotiations.

The White House has put pressure on both sides of this issue to reach a conclusion by the end of the month to prevent the CLARITY Act from losing traction in the Senate. This raises the stakes for some form of provisional agreement to be reached by both parties at Tuesday’s meeting, although the outcome is uncertain. Progress will likely take shape if an outline is created in favor of both parties, showing how yield-bearing stablecoins can be regulated without destabilizing the banking system.

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