Legal regulations regarding the cryptocurrency market, which has been dominating the recent period, continue. Accordingly, it has been announced that the United States has already spent $20 million on lobbying efforts in the crypto sector with a short time left until the end of 2023. In the previous year, this amount was $22.2 million.
Record-Breaking Lobbying Expenses
According to a report published by CoinGecko on November 14, the US crypto lobby spent $20.19 million from the beginning of 2023 to the present day, and these figures do not yet include the fourth-quarter data. Therefore, it is estimated that the total lobbying expenses this year will exceed last year’s figures, which were an absolute record for the American crypto industry.
Between 2019 and 2020, the total lobbying budget of US crypto companies ranged from $2.5 million to $3 million, representing less than 3% of Wall Street’s lobbying expenses. This figure increased to $8.5 million in 2021 and reached $22 million in 2022. So far, crypto lobbying expenses have accounted for only 19.7% of Wall Street lobbying.
Growth Continues in Crypto Lobbying Efforts
The number of participating companies in lobbying expenses did not show a significant change compared to the previous year. This year, there were 56 participating companies, while this number was announced as 57 in 2022. However, this number is significantly higher compared to previous years, with 37 companies in 2021, 17 companies in 2020, and 19 companies in 2019.
Coinbase became the leader in lobbying efforts by spending $7.5 million between 2019 and 2023. Non-profit Blockchain Association ranked second with a spending of $5.23 million. Ripple, with $3.46 million in crypto lobbying expenses, ranks third. The list of organizations that consistently participate in lobbying efforts includes Bitcoin Association and Anchorage Digital.
The data analysis of the study excluded mixed spending situations in crypto and non-crypto topics, such as the lobbying efforts of PayPal, JP Morgan, IBM, and other companies currently involved in the crypto asset economy.
