CNBC Television Sep 22, 2026
With Michael Bucella, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Neoclassic Capital
Bitcoin held up after the CLARITY Act stalled in the Senate the week before, and then drew $1 billion of inflows into the Bitcoin ETF in a single day, Michael Bucella said.
Bitcoin investors had told CNBC the bill mattered. Bucella said he has been arguing on his recent appearances that it matters much less than the market wanted it to.
"We can still pursue our industry without government intervention."
Michael Bucella co-founded Neoclassic Capital, a crypto investment firm, in 2024 after six years as a general partner at BlockTower Capital. He also sits on the board of TeraWulf, and joined CNBC on set.
The full segment is covered here so you can skip it.
Here are the 4 takeaways that matter.
Key Takeaways
The CLARITY Act "doesn't matter nearly as much" as the market wanted
Bitcoin was resilient after the bill stalled, then rose with the market this week
Crypto markets grow offshore first, and US platforms follow: Robinhood, Coinbase and X all want perpetual futures and prediction markets
He splits Bitcoin from the rest of crypto, and says some other tokens earn real revenue while many are worthless
Bitcoin is a hedge against failing currencies, and fixed-rate loans against it mean holders need to sell less often
1. CLARITY Matters Less
The show opened on the SEC's temporary exemption allowing limited trading of tokenized stocks in the US, and on how crypto, ether, Robinhood and Coinbase had moved since the decision the Thursday before. The host said bitcoin investors had told the show the CLARITY Act, the crypto market-structure bill that failed to advance in the Senate, mattered to Bitcoin, although there is no obvious one-to-one link.
The bill was a signal, not a necessity
Bucella said he has been trying to point out that the bill matters much less than he thinks the market wanted it to.
"It's something to point to" — Michael Bucella
It was a way to say that "Congress and the broader government are coming around to understanding our industry," he said. On his last two appearances he had said the industry could go ahead without Washington.
"We can still pursue our industry without government intervention" — Michael Bucella
Bitcoin held up, then joined the rally
He said "Bitcoin was resilient in the face of that last week." This week it has moved more in line with the broader market, with $1 billion of inflows into the Bitcoin ETF the day before. That, he said, is resilience on the way down and participation on the way up.
"Bad news is good news, good news is good news, we're in a good place." — Michael Bucella
The host was not impressed by $1 billion
The host said the bitcoin investors the show talks to were excited about the $1 billion of inflows, but that a billion dollars is not much and a lot more is needed. The host then noted that Bitcoin passed $100,000 and hit all-time highs after President Trump's election and his Bitcoin conference appearance. The host asked what the fundamentals are now that, in the host's words, all of that had come to pass.
