Will CLARITY Act pass in September? Ft. GSR

Watch on YouTube ↗  |  August 17, 2026 at 12:46  |  38:10  |  The Block
Speakers
Josh Ryman — Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, GSR
Gareth Jeninson — Host & Head of Multimedia, The Block

Summary

Gareth Jeninson hosts The Block's daily show and recaps crypto headlines including Strategy's Bitcoin reserve update and Hive's AI GPU deal. GSR's Josh Ryman discusses why the CLARITY Act has slipped to September, citing political and banking-lobby hurdles and a narrow Senate window. He also outlines GSR's market views: blockchain and crypto adoption will keep growing, token value must accrue to real fees or network use, stablecoin payments and perpetuals are gaining adoption, and crypto volatility is near lows. The conversation closes with a look at sports prediction markets' state-versus-federal legal battle.

  • Host recaps Strategy's latest Bitcoin treasury update and Hive's $350 million AI GPU deal.
  • Josh Ryman sees CLARITY Act passage as politically difficult and uncertain for September.
  • He argues the blockchain industry will permeate traditional finance despite weak crypto prices.
  • He says future crypto tokens need real value accrual, while pure governance tokens may lose value.
  • He highlights stablecoin payments and crypto perpetuals as areas working and gaining traditional finance attention.
  • He notes low crypto volatility has historically been a potential bottoming signal.
  • He expects sports prediction market regulation to face a Supreme Court battle.
Ideas
Josh Ryman Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, GSR 28:32
Value-accruing tokens over governance tokens.
The next phase of crypto token design is value accrual: tokens need network value or fee value, pure governance tokens are unlikely to retain value, and some tokens are switching to tokenized equity models with rights to future income streams; GSR is focused on designing tokens that accrue value.
Value-accruing tokens HIGH
Josh Ryman Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, GSR 28:32
Value-accruing tokens over governance tokens.
The next phase of crypto token design is value accrual: tokens need network value or fee value, pure governance tokens are unlikely to retain value, and some tokens are switching to tokenized equity models with rights to future income streams; GSR is focused on designing tokens that accrue value.
Governance-only tokens HIGH
Josh Ryman Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, GSR 32:36
Stablecoin payment adoption is exploding.
Payments are exploding on blockchains, led by USDC and Tether, because moving money over the internet, especially cross-border, is better on blockchain rails; every large bank and financial institution is now scrambling to have a stablecoin or payment strategy.
Stablecoin payments MED
Josh Ryman Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, GSR 33:02
Crypto perpetuals are stealing derivatives volumes.
Crypto perpetuals offer 24/7 exposure and are a much better way to trade than quarterly rolled futures; they are stealing mindshare and volumes, and traditional finance firms increasingly see they need to be involved.
Crypto perpetual futures MED
Josh Ryman Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, GSR 34:12
TradFi integration expands Bitcoin and Solana TAM.
Traditional finance integration is coming: crypto must be interchangeable in accounts like Schwab from dollars to stablecoins to Bitcoin to Solana, and once that integration occurs the next crypto explosion can occur on a much wider total addressable market.
SOL BTC MED
Josh Ryman Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, GSR 35:44
Sports prediction market case heads Supreme Court.
Sports prediction markets present a state-versus-federal derivatives question under the Commodity Exchange Act; state regulators and the CFTC are in conflict, and the issue is likely to end up at the Supreme Court, making it a key legal battle to monitor for the sector.
PREDICTION MARKETS MED
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This The Block video, published August 17, 2026, features Josh Ryman discussing Value-accruing tokens, Governance-only tokens, Stablecoin payments, Crypto perpetual futures, SOL, BTC, PREDICTION MARKETS. 6 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.

Speakers: Josh Ryman  · Tickers: Value-accruing tokens, Governance-only tokens, Stablecoin payments, Crypto perpetual futures, SOL, BTC, PREDICTION MARKETS