The Big Story 

The cryptocurrency lobby rapidly expanded its presence on Capitol Hill in recent months as lawmakers took their first bite at legislation to regulate digital currency.

© Illustration / Courtney Jones; Greg Nash; and Adobe Stock

At least 27 crypto companies or advocates filed their first-ever lobbying disclosures this year across some 20 firms, reflecting an increasing appetite for influence in a more crypto-friendly Washington.

The newcomers originate from all corners of the industry.

There’s betting website Polymarket, a gaming company that created an NFT version of the White House Easter egg hunt, and a Seychelles-based exchange that cannot operate in the U.S. market due to a federal money laundering settlement.

Together, they spent nearly $2.8 million between April 1 and June 30 on lobbying landmark legislation promoting digital assets to the Treasury Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission, and a host of other issues relevant to blockchain infrastructure — an increasingly sprawling ecosystem that some hope could one day be as ubiquitous as the internet.

The push has paid off for crypto so far. The GENIUS Act, a bill with bipartisan support signed by President Trump last week, has been regarded as the government’s “seal of approval” on the industry.

The law sets up a regulatory framework for stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency that is theoretically pegged to the U.S. dollar or another reference asset.

The House also advanced several other landmark bills during its monumental “crypto week,” which featured high-profile lobbying stunts such as vending machines around the Capitol and the National Mall with customized chocolate bars urging “yes” votes, bankrolled by the crypto exchange Coinbase.

Lobbying expenses that week were not covered in the second quarter disclosures.

At least 73 companies or associations focused on crypto disclosed federal lobbying activities, to the tune of about $11.4 million.

This total doesn’t include spending from investment firms such as Andreessen Horowitz ($790,000) or BlackRock ($810,000) that have substantial crypto interests but also lobbied on a suite of other financial regulation issues.

The Hill’s Miriam Waldvogel has more here.

Welcome to The Hill’s Technology newsletter, I’m Julia Shapero — tracking the latest moves from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.

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