Crypto industry boosted lobbying to pass coveted stablecoin bill

Business Times

23-07-2025

[WASHINGTON] Crypto companies and advocates of digital assets boosted their lobbying this year to ensure passage of landmark legislation, delivering the nascent industry its first major policy victory in Washington.
The firms reported spending US$6.9 million in the second quarter, congressional disclosures show, a 21 per cent increase over their outlays in the previous three months. The expanded spending came as Congress advanced industry-backed bills, including stablecoin legislation that US President Donald Trump signed into law last Friday (Jul 18).
During the run-up to the bill's passage by the House of Representatives, during what Trump dubbed 'crypto week', Bitcoin roared to record highs, breaching US$120,000 for the first time.
The law, known as the Genius Act, sets regulatory rules for US dollar-backed stablecoins, a move advocates say will broaden the adoption of digital assets in everyday finance. And more bills supported by the industry are moving through Congress.
The House has passed broader legislation that creates a market structure for trading digital assets and a bill that bars the US Federal Reserve System from issuing its own cryptocurrency. Both measures await Senate approval.
The total spent by the crypto firms and allies is still relatively small by Washington standards as lobbyists focused their attention largely on industry-specific concerns.
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Coinbase Global, one of the biggest lobbying spenders with expenditures at US$970,000, listed just seven issues it focused its lobbying on. Six of those concerned digital assets, including the stablecoin and market structure bills. It also lobbied on matters affecting the Securities and Exchange Commission's budget and appropriations request.
By contrast, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer spent US$3.5 million in the second quarter, lobbying on dozens of issues including the federal budget, vaccine coverage, intellectual property protection, taxes, tariffs, other trade barriers, international supply chains, and regulation of pharmacy benefit managers, according to its disclosure.
That laser-sharp focus was demonstrated in the 2024 election, in which industry executives and advocates for digital assets tapped their war chests to back friendly candidates, most prominently Trump.
Fairshake, the industry's super political action committee, and two affiliated super-PACs combined to raise US$230 million. They stayed out of the presidential contest, and instead backed or opposed congressional candidates based on their positions on cryptocurrency.
It marked an unprecedented sum for an organisation with a single business interest. The National Association of Realtors Congressional Fund was the next biggest super-PAC, raising US$20 million.
Fairshake announced days before the House vote on the stablecoin bill that it raised US$109 million since the 2024 election, including US$25 million donated by Coinbase.
Part of the increased spending on lobbyists was driven by new hiring in 2025, with 44 additional lobbying registrations filed with Congress, more than the number who signed up in all of 2024. Tether Operations, whose eponymous stablecoin is among the most widely traded, has added four new firms this year, collectively paying them US$290,000.
A one-time sceptic who has embraced the industry, Trump courted crypto enthusiasts during his 2024 campaign. He made US$57.7 million from token sales via a digital assets firm he and his sons helped launch in 2024, according to his most recent financial disclosure. BLOOMBERG