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Last Updated on December 11, 2024 Lobbying is often labelled as bribery by many people who do not understand the system, but it’s a vital part of participatory democracy.
Lobbying is protected by the Constitution of the United States of America and happens secretively in every country.
As a part of lobbying the government, individuals and organizations run public campaigns to make the elected officials pick up and pass specific public policy actions in favour of their agendas.
The same is done by crypto companies, too, and in the year 2023 alone, these crypto companies made lobbying contributions of up to $40.42 Million with the sole motivation of influencing policies in their favour.
It only makes sense that companies profiting from crypto lobbying will spend considerable money to ensure crypto-friendly laws are passed as soon as possible.
For this reason, the expenditure on crypto lobbying has grown manifold over the last half a decade or so.
Key Insights & Stats
Since 2017, last 7 years accounted for 1386% growth in crypto Lobbying expenditure in the US.
Almost 60% of the total lobbying spending, or $78.94 million out of $131.91 million, happened in the last two years, 2022 and 2023.
In 2023, Apollo Global Management spent $7.56 million, making it the highest spender in crypto lobbying expenditure, followed by Managed Funds Assn with $4.11 million spent and Coinbase with a spending of $2.86 million.
Coinbase’s Lobbying spend increased by 3475% from merely $80,000 in 2017 to $2.86 million in 2023. After 7 years of consecutive lobbying spend, 74% of Coinbase’s total lobbying spend came in last two years (2022 & 2023).
Binance.us crypto lobbying expenditure increased by 656.25% from $160,000( 2021) to $1,215,000 (2023).
Ripple saw a 1780% increase in lobbying expenditure from 2017 ($50,000) to 2023 ($940,000).
Lobbying Expenditures & Lobbyists Hired
As per our research, in the year 2023, the top three companies that have lobbied the government to enact more pro-crypto laws are listed below:
Note: The expenditure listed below is for the companies involved with crypto, not the lobbying spent on crypto or crypto specifically.
#1. Apollo Global Management (Apollo Crypto)
- Total Lobbying Expenditures (2023)– $7.56 Million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 104
- Number of Revolvers- 78
Apollo Global Management has spent $7.56 million in lobbying, the highest among the crypto companies in the USA.
One of the most significant asset management firms in the US, Apollo Global Management, entered the crypto world as Apollo Crypto in 2021.
With this platform, they began investing in crypto assets on behalf of well-known institutional investors.
From 2021 till now, the platform has generated a return of 158.5%. In contrast, the Cryptocurrency Broad Digital Market Index (BDM) reported a growth of 52.3% during the same period.
Cryptocurrency Broad Digital Market Index shows how a long list of cryptocurrencies performs.
And Apollo’s crypto’s return rate exceeded that of the BDM index, indicating its commendable performance.
The crypto world has proven profitable for Apollo Global Management, so making the highest investment in lobbying isn’t surprising.
They have used 104 lobbyists during the year, out of which 78 have been revolvers.
It is common practice amongst people working in the public sector, including congressional staff, to take jobs with lobbying companies as they understand the inner workings of the sectors they used to oversee.
These people are called “revolvers,” and the ones that make the opposite switch (from lobbying companies to public office) are called “reverse revolvers.”
#2. Managed Funds Assn
- Total Lobbying Expenditures (2023)– $4.11 million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 32
- Number of Revolvers- 25
Managed Funds Assn has enough reasons to spend on lobbying because it’s an organization that came into existence to advocate for the acceptance of policies or trends that influence alternative assets management, including digital assets such as cryptocurrencies.
It’s a board developed collectively by a group of investment firms. This association became interested in the growing trend of cryptocurrencies.
Its huge lobbying expenditure shows that the association has significantly influenced cryptocurrency policies, rules, and guidelines.
For this purpose, they have used 32 lobbyists, out of which 25 have been revolvers.
#3. Coinbase
- Total Lobbying Expenditures (2023)– $2.86 million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 39
- Number of Revolvers- 32
Coinbase has spent $2.86 million in lobbying. As per our data, it’s the 3rd highest amount paid by a crypto company on Lobbying in 2023.
Coinbase has the third-largest market share in terms of trading volume.
They have the second-highest spot trading volume (~$1.47 billion) after Binance, so they would be interested in spending so much on lobbying exercises.
They have used 39 lobbyists during the year, out of which 32 have been revolvers.
Lobbying Expenditure Trend Since 2017
Going back to 2017, we have plotted a graph to showcase how lobbying expenditure has increased.
This shows which companies have long-time proponents of lobbying campaigns and have spent the most on lobbying.
Spending on crypto lobbying has taken off in the past seven years and has grown 1386% from $2.72 million in 2017 to $40.42 million in 2023.
Almost 60% growth of the sector’s spending has come in the combined last two years, i.e., $38.52 million (2022) and $40.42 million (2023).
Biggest Lobbying Spenders Since 2017
When it comes to the individual companies, the top five companies that have contributed most to this spending over the past 7 years are:
- Apollo Global Management (Apollo Crypto)
- Managed Funds Assn
- CME Group
- Coinbase
- Block Inc (Square Inc)
#1. Apollo Global Management (Apollo Crypto)
- Total Lobbying Expenditures in 2023 – $7.56 Million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 104
- Number of Revolvers- 78
In 7 years, from 2017 to 2023, Apollo Global Management has spent the highest on lobbying. It has claimed the first position with the highest lobbying expenditure of $28.71 million.
Its arm, Apollo Crypto, leads institutional investors in cryptocurrencies.
Apollo Global Management is a renowned global financial and investment entity that occupies the 127th position on the Forbes 2000 World Largest Investment Firms.
Hence, the involvement of such a prominent global finance and investment entity makes a big difference in the lobbying process for crypto protocols.
#2. Managed Funds Assn
- Total Lobbying Expenditures in 2023 – $4.11 million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 32
- Number of Revolvers- 25
Managed Funds Assn represents the voice of some of the most prominent players in the finance and investment industry.
BlackRock Alternatives Investers, Citadel, KKR, IEX Group. Inc., etc, are just a few of the well-known members of this association.
With such leaders on the board, it holds immense power and authority to influence the finance and investment world.
Crypto has emerged as a popular alternative investment option in the last decade. Therefore, the Managed Funds Association is anticipated to voice support for the crypto world.
In the last seven years, it has spent $21.96 million lobbying to influence the acceptance of crypto protocols and policies.
#3. CME Group
- Total Lobbying Expenditures in 2023 – $1.47 million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 18
- Number of Revolvers- 14
The CME Group is a significant proponent of Ethereum and Bitcoin derivatives contracts that allow traditional financial investors to get a taste of and profit off crypto price volatility without ever taking ownership of the asset.
Since 2017, when the first derivatives contracts for Bitcoin were offered on the exchange, it has driven a lot of volume for the crypto derivatives market.
The company has spent nearly $10.19 million in lobbying-related activities since 2017, making it the third-highest spender on lobbying exercises.
They used 18 lobbyists in 2023, with 14 being revolvers.
#4. Coinbase
- Total Lobbying Expenditures in 2022– $2.86 Million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 39
- Number of Revolvers- 32
Coinbase is one of the oldest crypto exchanges that can buy and sell cryptocurrencies.
Established in 2012 primarily for the US audience, it has now spread to 100+ countries. They tried their best to become the go-to platform for crypto futures trading but have yet to materialize it.
By having so much skin in the game, the exchange has spent $8.45 million in the last 7 years, taking fourth place in this list, and has recorded a steady growth of lobbying expenditure year-on-year.
#5. Block Inc (Square Inc)
- Total Lobbying Expenditures in 2023– $1.76 Million
- Number of Lobbyists Hired- 26
- Number of Revolvers- 21
Block, previously known as Square, has Cash App, TIDAL, TBD, and Spiral under its umbrella. C
Cash App, Spiral, and TBD are related to the crypto and blockchain space, giving the parent company a strong incentive to spend significantly on lobbying to achieve their agendas.
This has bagged them 5th on this list, with an accumulated spending of $6.37 million in the last 7 years.
Conclusion
BlackRock was the most prominent American company that lobbied for Bitcoin ETFs.
As the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock has used its significant influence and resources to push for Bitcoin ETF approvals, notably through its iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT).
Other firms like Fidelity, VanEck, and ARK Invest also advocated for Bitcoin ETFs. However, BlackRock’s extensive involvement and market reach position it as the leading lobbyist in this sector for at least the Bitcoin ETF products.
So, all in all, lobbying has positively impacted the cryptocurrency industry, with major companies like Meta and IBM getting involved. However, simply investing money in lobbying doesn’t always yield favorable results.
Despite this, some companies and individuals in the crypto space remain skeptical about the changes lobbying might bring to the financial world.
Methodology
To build these comparative analyses and graphics, the Social Capital Markets team has used data from OpenSecrets, which ensures transparency for lobbying activities in the USA.
Using data from the website ensures that we could rank the companies that had a significant involvement in the crypto lobbying space based on the total expenditure from 2017 onwards, which is a timeline of 7 years.
We also used this data to compare companies spending the most in 2023.
