Stablecoin issuers, including Tether and Circle, have spent more than $1.3 million lobbying for cryptocurrency legislation in the United States since the beginning of 2022.
Stablecoins have recently become the focus of U.S. lawmakers trying to develop a regulatory framework for crypto-assets tied to the U.S. dollar.
Stablecoin issuers themselves contribute to this in many ways.
According to ProPublica, since the beginning of 2022, Tether, which issues the USDT stabelcoin, has spent about $600,000 to lobby for the crypto industry in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, and the company’s quarterly spending for this purpose amounts to $120,000.
To do so, Tether is partnering with the law firm of Michael Jason Lee and the consulting firm FTI Government Affairs, which has ties to both parties in the U.S.
According to Open Secrets, Tether spent another $270,000 on lobbying in the first quarter of 2023.
Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, is also spending large sums to promote the crypto industry’s interests.
According to ProPublica, the company partnered with consulting firm Invariant in late 2021 and has since spent at least $560,000 on lobbying.
Circle’s efforts focused on educational seminars about stablocoins for politicians and members of Congress. Circle’s quarterly budget for cryptocurrency lobbying is now about $100,000.
As for Paxos, the former BUSD staplecoin issuer, the company has spent about $300,000 since the beginning of 2022. Paxos interacted with the bipartisan socio-political organization Mindset.
Last year, trading platform Coinbase said it would provide users with information about the crypto-asset lobby, and what decisions local politicians make about cryptocurrencies.