It appears that stablecoin issuers used significant amounts of funds to influence lawmakers in the US.
ProPublica, a public interest outlet, shared reports revealing that several major stablecoin issuers, such as Tether, Circle, and Paxos, spent over $1 million on lobbying lawmakers.
The data was recently brought to light, showcasing the lengths crypto firms went to influence lawmakers in Capitol since 2022.
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According to the reports, stablecoin issuer Tether alone has invested around $600,000 in lobbying since 2022, with a quarterly expenditure of $120,000 aimed at lobbying the US Senate and House of Representatives.
It is worth noting that lobbying has predominantly revolved around legislation related to stablecoins.
On top of that, Open Secrets, a group dedicated to government transparency, stated that USDT issuer Tether spent an additional $270,000 for lobbying during the first quarter of 2023.
In the meantime, USD Coin (USDC) issuer Circle has also been heavily investing in lobbying activities.
According to ProPublica, Circle's lobbying journey started in late 2021 with investments in strategic consulting firm Invariant, accumulating a total expenditure of at least $560,000 over a year.
The firm has lobbied several fundamental institutions, including the Senate, House of Representatives, Treasury, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and Securities and Exchange Commission.
It is believed that Circle’s lobbying activities focused on enlightening policymakers about its business model, educating lawmakers on issues linked to cryptocurrencies, and keeping tabs on cryptocurrency proposals.
Furthermore, since the beginning of 2022, Paxos has allocated around $300,000 to lobbying. It is believed that the company's lobbying efforts focused on issues concerning stablecoin legislation drafting.
It is worth noting that new estimations reveal that in 2022, the expenditures on lobbying by the crypto industry surged by 120% in the United States.
