Arthur Hayes said at the Consensus 2026 conference that the Clarity Act fundamentally misunderstands the essence of Bitcoin, arguing that any attempt to fit it into a federal regulatory framework eliminates the one thing that gives it its value.
The offering came at a time when Bitcoin is trading above $82,000, with institutional ETF inflows accelerating, suggesting that market action and ideology are currently moving in opposite directions.
Arthur Hayes’ opinions shake up the scene
Hayes argues that Bitcoin’s value arises from its operation outside of any regulatory system, and also noted that legislation such as the Clarity Act does not clarify anything.
“This is the value that Bitcoin provides outside of the regulatory system. The exact reason behind this is that it does not adhere to the regulatory regime that some of you want to subject it to through laws like the Clarity Act and others,” Hayes told the audience.
Regarding the price, Hayes was blunt as usual, saying: “If you want to talk about the price of Bitcoin and its fair value, all that matters is how many units of fiat currency exist today. » Hayes aims for the price of Bitcoin to reach $125,000 by the end of the year, a goal tied entirely to global monetary expansion, not legislative outcomes. According to him, regulation has nothing to do with price calculation.
Hayes went further, saying that enthusiasm for the “Clarity Act” within the industry reflects the interests of existing centralized corporations with lobbying operations in Washington, not the decentralized ecosystem that Bitcoin was designed to circumvent. “The owners of the central corporations want regulation because it benefits their businesses,” he said. According to Hayes, the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem and privacy-focused infrastructure will get nothing from this law except a federal licensing framework that they technically cannot comply with.
“The owners of the core companies want regulation because it benefits their business. »
His position contrasts directly with the dominant tone during Consensus 2026; Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has put intense pressure on the Senate to advance the bill before the May 21 holiday.
Is Bitcoin’s performance in line with Hayes?
Bitcoin rose 8% in a week to $82,600 following Hayes’ remarks at the Consensus Miami 2026 conference, continuing a rally in which the currency maintained stability above $80,000 despite weeks of legislative uncertainty. The Spot Cumulative Volume Delta index surged 199% during the same period, demonstrating strong buying pressure.
Bitcoin ETFs also added $532 million in a single session as the Clarity Act moved through committee, pushing the total assets under management (AUM) of these funds past $59 billion, with total institutional exposure exceeding $106 billion.
An anonymous analyst noted that Bitcoin is entering a commodity supercycle driven by structural currency devaluation, which is consistent with Hayes’ money supply thesis, even though the ETF’s dynamics suggest that institutional players desire the regulatory engineering that Hayes opposes.
The fact that Bitcoin is still trading above $81,000 with record ETF inflows does not necessarily prove that Hayes’ view is wrong.
The article Arthur Hayes: Clarity Law Destroys Bitcoin’s Fundamental Value appeared first on Cryptonews Arabic.
