Solana Institute CEO says CLARITY Act must shield open-source developers
Kristin Smith is pushing the Senate to pass the CLARITY crypto market structure bill while preserving strong protections for open-source developers and blockchain infrastructure providers. She argues that developers, validators, and non-custodial wallet providers should not be treated as financial intermediaries because they do not custody user funds or control transactions. More than 60 crypto leaders, including Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko, signed a letter supporting those protections. Smith highlighted the BRCA proposal as a way to give legal certainty to noncontrolling software developers and prevent them from being labeled money transmitters just for publishing code. The CLARITY Act has advanced through committee and could reach a Senate floor vote later this summer. Her stance aligns with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce’s view that publishing open-source blockchain code is protected speech.
