Open-source software has become the latest flashpoint in America’s crypto regulation fight.

The debate is no longer only about whether tokens should be treated as securities or commodities. It is now about something more basic: whether people who write blockchain code can be treated like financial intermediaries if that code is later used to move digital assets.

Solana Institute CEO Kristin Smith is urging the U.S. Senate to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, better known as the CLARITY Act, while keeping developer protections intact. Her argument is simple: open-source developers, validators and non-custodial wallet providers should not be regulated like brokers, exchanges or custodians if they do not control user funds.

That…