DEF’s July 2026 Recap
August 22, 2026
Below you’ll find a recap of what the DeFi Education Fund (DEF) was up to in July 2026. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about a specific activity, please do not hesitate to reach out to contact@defieducationfund.org.
Continuing to Fight for Developer Protections in the Clarity Act
On July 22, 2026, the Senate released a new draft of the Clarity Act, harmonizing proposed text from the Senate Banking and Agriculture Committees. While the revised text reflects significant compromises made throughout the legislative process, it preserves critical developer protections and further bolsters the bill’s law enforcement provisions.
Soon after the text was released, the DEF team published an analysis of the bill. In the analysis, we note that “while no bill is perfect and significant compromises were made along the way to get here, the Clarity Act maintains important protections for DeFi developers.”
To read the full analysis, click here.
Welcoming Jonathan Claudius as DEF’s Strategic Security Advisor
On July 21, 2026, DEF announced that Jonathan Claudius, co-founder and CEO of Asymmetric Research, has joined the team as DEF’s new Strategic Security Advisor. Jonathan will play an integral role in leading our Open Protocol Security Coalition (OPSeC), as we collectively work to strengthen cybersecurity across blockchain ecosystems and onchain software.
In this advisory role for DEF, Jonathan will help shape OPSeC’s strategic direction and priorities, ensuring the coalition’s efforts have the greatest impact. He will help convene and coordinate the security experts and contributors, and lend his expertise to curating and developing the practical resources (i.e., audits, trainings, war games, and other ongoing measures) that teams can adopt to strengthen their defenses.
To learn more about Jonathan, click here, to learn more about OPSec, click here.
July Financial Disclosures
| Donations Received | $1,022,500.00 |
| Lobbyists | $25,000.00 |
| Public Relations | |
| Policy Litigation | $91,932.08 |
| Marcomm & Fundraising | $1,130.18 |
| Operating Expense | $351,668.25 |
July Content and Media by DEF
Select Media
- The Block:Senate releases latest version of Clarity Act including software developer protections and ethics provision with ‘sunset’ date in 2029
- “At first glance, this title appears to be smart regulation that will provide law enforcement with appropriate tools without overregulating software developers,” the DeFi Education Fund said in a post on X.
- The Defiant:Crypto Industry Pushes for Senate Vote on New CLARITY Act Text as Democrats Blast Ethics Plan
- The DeFi Education Fund, which has pressed for developer protections throughout the negotiations, said the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act section is unchanged, meaning non-custodial developers won’t be treated as money transmitters. Developer protections under the Exchange Act and Commodity Exchange Act remain, as does the self-custody provision known as the Keep Your Coins Act.
Blogs/Articles/Papers
- Welcoming Jonathan Claudius as DEF’s Strategic Security Advisor
- July 22, 2026: Reacting to the Latest Senate Clarity Act Text
