Robinhood was the first crypto-related organisation to spend more than $1 million on lobbying in 2021, spending $1.35 million. In second place, Ripple Labs spent $900,000. Crypto businesses spent $5 million on lobbying in the first three quarters of 2021, according to the Economist.
According to the NGO Open Secrets, which provided the data for the Crypto Head report, the highest-spending lobbying group in the United States in 2020, the National Association of Realtors spent $84.11 million. “Spending is only one gauge of influence,” noted Kristin Smith, executive director of the Blockchain Association. “These roundups do not frequently provide context on the effectiveness of dollars spent.” “A one-to-one comparison is tough,” Smith said of the Crypto Head report, which “mixes enterprises with diverse focuses, multi-member trade groups, and other entities.”
Smith stated that her organization’s first objective is education. “Our number-one aim is helping [Treasury Secretary Janet] Yellen understand crypto goes beyond the financing of illegal enterprises,” she told Fox News last year.
The crypto business was not the only one advocating for the adoption of cryptocurrencies. According to CNBC sources, the National Football League spent $600,000 lobbying Congress, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, and other government agencies in 2021 to determine “if crypto can be a fundamental component of the League’s business.” Andrew Yang, a former presidential candidate, founded Lobby3, a decentralised autonomous group that would advocate for Web3 and poverty eradication.
