More than 110 prominent crypto investors, developers, and advocacy organizations have joined forces to urge Congress to protect software developers who build and maintain blockchain networks. In a recent letter addressed to the Senate Banking Committee, these industry leaders called attention to the crucial role that developers and non-custodial service providers play in shaping the digital financial future of the United States.

The letter welcomes recent legislative moves, noting that both the House and Senate drafts of the CLARITY Act include language from the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act and the Keep Your Coins Act. These provisions aim to ensure that individuals and entities are not regulated solely for activities central to creating, developing, publishing, or maintaining blockchain networks, nor for enabling users to access these networks through software interfaces while keeping control of their own funds.

Advocates argue that the preservation of traditional protections for open-source software development is essential. If Congress fails to protect developers and non-custodial service providers, industry leaders caution that they cannot support the proposed market structure bill. They emphasize that imposing outdated regulatory frameworks—designed for traditional intermediated finance—on innovative, decentralized technologies could stifle progress and push talent and innovation abroad.

There is strong bipartisan backing for improved developer protections, with a supermajority in the House of Representatives supporting the CLARITY Act. As the Senate revisits the bill following its August recess, the crypto industry’s central message is clear: safeguarding the people who build foundational blockchain infrastructure is not only necessary for continued innovation but also for maintaining America’s leadership in digital financial technology.

Failure to act, warn advocates, could erode industry support for upcoming regulations and jeopardize the United States’ standing at the forefront of global crypto innovation.