US Shutdown + CLARITY on Hold: What It Means for Crypto
US Shutdown + CLARITY on Hold: What It Means for Crypto

US Shutdown + CLARITY on Hold: What It Means for Crypto

Alice Cooper · February 20, 2026 · 3m ·

CLARITY and Another Shutdown Risk

U.S. banks refused to compromise on stablecoin yields. At a White House meeting, the banking side took a hard line: tighter oversight, a ban on rewards for stablecoin holders, and any bonuses/interest rates cut off entirely.

The stated rationale: protecting deposits and real-economy lending.

Temporary funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) expired on February 13 — starting February 14, a partial shutdown is underway: some operations are paused, and some employees are working under a temporary lapse in funding. 

Capital Flows and Exchanges

Whales are accumulating. According to Glassnode, the 30-day average of BTC exchange outflows is ~3.2% — a pattern similar to H1 2022 before the next bullish phase began.

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Coinbase — Q4 and FY2025

Coinbase reported results: revenue of $1.8B for the quarter and $7.2B for FY2025. Operational focus: transaction fees, institutional services, and a larger share of recurring revenue streams.

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Hyperliquid vs Coinbase

Volumes: ~$2.6T vs ~$1.4T. 

Year-to-date: HYPE token +31.7%, COIN stock −27.0%.

Networks, Products, and Infrastructure

Ethereum × AI

Vitalik Buterin outlined an architecture for integrating Ethereum and AI: tools for AI agents, economic infrastructure (on-chain markets/governance), and local LLMs for a cyberpunk-style model of self-sovereignty.

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Solana leads payment platforms with +755% YoY growth.

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TON Pay in Telegram

TON Foundation launched an SDK that lets Telegram mini apps accept $TON and stablecoins natively: they promise <1-second checkouts and fees below $0.01. If adoption scales, this could become a catalyst for on-chain payments inside the ecosystem.

X Money — Beta Coming

Elon Musk said a limited beta of X Money could launch in 1–2 months: one place to store money and run all payments.

CME Expands Its Lineup

Futures on ADA, LINK, and XLM are now live — another step toward institutional access and managed altcoin exposure.

UK Digital Gilts

The UK Treasury selected HSBC’s platform for a pilot issuance of digital gilts — a notable bridge between traditional markets and blockchain infrastructure.

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CLARITY on hold, exchange outflows, Ethereum × AI, X Money, Solana #1 | Hexn