ChainCatcher news reports that, according to a study by Social Capital Markets, lobbying expenditures in the U.S. cryptocurrency industry have surged since 2017, increasing by 1386% over the past seven years, with nearly 60% of the spending (about $79 million out of $132 million) occurring in the last two years.Coinbase's spending on lobbying the U.S. government for specific policy actions favorable to its agenda has increased by 3475%, rising from $80,000 in 2017 to $2.9 million in 2023. About 74% of Coinbase's lobbying expenditures occurred in the last two years (2022 and 2023).Binance.US's cryptocurrency lobbying expenditures increased from $160,000 in 2021 to $1.2 million in 2023, a growth of 656.3%; while Ripple's spending increased by 1780% from 2017 to 2023, rising from $50,000 to $940,000.The increase in lobbying expenditures coincides with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) initiating multiple enforcement actions against several industry companies, including Coinbase and Ripple.The report notes that BlackRock is the most well-known U.S. company lobbying for a Bitcoin ETF.As the world's largest asset management company, BlackRock has leveraged its immense influence and resources to push for the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF in January 2024, particularly through its lobbying efforts for the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT).

ChainCatcher news, according to the report "Social Capital Market", Coinbase has increased its lobbying expenditure by 3,475% over the past seven years. The cryptocurrency exchange's spending rose from $80,000 in 2017 to $2.86 million in 2023.Ripple Labs also increased its lobbying expenditure from $50,000 to $940,000 during the same period, a growth of 1,780%. Binance.US's lobbying expenditure grew by 656%, reaching $1.2 million in 2023. Tether, Uniswap, and Block Inc. also spent $1.2 million, $280,000, and $1.7 million on lobbying in 2023, respectively.The total lobbying expenditure of the entire cryptocurrency industry has increased by 1,386% since 2017.

ChainCatcher News, the American cryptocurrency lobbying group Blockchain Association has submitted an amicus brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in support of Custodia Bank's lawsuit against the Federal Reserve.The Chief Legal Officer of the Blockchain Association stated, "The Federal Reserve claims that digital assets pose safety and soundness issues, which protects large existing banks and makes it harder for industry participants to find banking partners. This puts customers in a bind. And Custodia has become a victim of this scheme.Most importantly, the Federal Reserve's master account provides a safety net for banks and their customers. Lack of access to this system harms the interests of millions of law-abiding Americans participating in the digital asset economy.We hope the Tenth Circuit will make the right decision."

ChainCatcher news, according to Jin Shi reports, well-known American conservative political news reporter, writer, and current affairs commentator Tucker Carlson stated that despite publicly showing support for Biden, Obama is privately lobbying to replace Biden, telling insiders that Biden cannot defeat Trump. Carlson described this as a situation described by "exceptionally reliable sources."In last Friday's debate, Biden completely embarrassed himself, which threw the Democratic leadership into a panic and prompted The New York Times to insist that he should withdraw from the race. Despite strong opposition, Obama still supported Biden on social media, claiming that "bad debate nights happen," and people should continue to support him.Carlson stated on social media: "From an exceptionally reliable source, I've learned that Obama's tweet supporting Biden is not sincere. Privately, Obama is telling people that Biden cannot win, so he supports an open nomination convention." He added, "Obama has not revealed who he supports, at least as of yesterday afternoon, he has not personally met with Biden to convey this message."

ChainCatcher news, according to Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett, U.S. Congressman French Hill, who supports cryptocurrency, visited detained Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan in Nigeria along with colleague Chrissy Houlahan, strongly urging for his release. Gambaryan has been suffering from malaria and pneumonia during his three-month detention.Hill stated that Gambaryan was "wrongfully detained by the Nigerian government" and called on the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria to advocate for Gambaryan's release on humanitarian grounds.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, the crypto advocacy group Stand With Crypto initiated by Coinbase has launched a lobbying organization PAC (Political Action Committee) for the U.S. elections, raising funds from its 440,000 members to support pro-cryptocurrency politicians.It is reported that the raised funds will be used to support bipartisan candidates running for the House and Senate in the November U.S. elections.

ChainCatcher news, according to a report by Reuters, external lobbying teams associated with the cryptocurrency industry have raised over $102 million to support pro-digital asset candidates in the upcoming U.S. congressional elections. As the industry faces increasing scrutiny from regulators such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and lawmakers, cryptocurrency companies are looking to influence policies that favor them.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, the Texas Blockchain Association and the Cryptocurrency Freedom Alliance have filed a lawsuit, claiming that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's expansion of the definition of "dealer" to encompass digital asset activities is excessive. The lawsuit claims that the expanded definition of dealer will cover those who are merely trading digital assets. The lawsuit states that the SEC did not consider the feedback received during the public comment period for the rule and did not conduct the "statutorily required economic analysis." The lawsuit requests the court to declare the rule "arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise not in accordance with law" under the Administrative Procedure Act and to prevent the SEC from enforcing the rule.Previously, the SEC approved the expanded definition of "dealer" in February by a vote of 3 to 2, describing it as "a functional analysis based on the individual’s securities trading activities rather than the type of securities being traded."

ChainCatcher News, data from the U.S. Senate Public Records Office shows that lobbying activities targeting crypto stablecoins surged in the first three quarters of 2023, including lobbying funds from the largest stablecoin issuer, Tether. There have been 161 lobbying disclosure reports mentioning stablecoin legislation or regulation, an increase of 79% compared to the 90 reports mentioning the topic in the first three quarters of 2022. According to data provided by OpenSecrets based on federal disclosure, lobbying funds spent on behalf of Tether skyrocketed to $760,000 during this period, ranking sixth among all cryptocurrency companies, approximately double that of the previous year. Digital asset exchange Coinbase Global revealed that a significant portion of the over $2 million spent in the first nine months of this year was allocated to stablecoins.

ChainCatcher News, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (Democrat from Massachusetts) stated in a letter to the Blockchain Association that the lobbying efforts of the cryptocurrency industry "undermine" the federal government's anti-terrorism efforts, claiming that cryptocurrencies are used by terrorist organizations, including Hamas, to evade sanctions. Warren accused the Blockchain Association and "other cryptocurrency interest groups" of lobbying efforts that "focus on delaying and denying new rules to restrict the use of cryptocurrencies by terrorists and criminals."

ChainCatcher news, according to Reuters, as of the end of the third quarter, crypto companies spent nearly $19 million on lobbying, compared to $16 million in the same period last year. Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase spent $2.16 million, followed by Foris DAX, the Blockchain Association, and Binance Holdings.Blockchain Association CEO Kristin Smith stated, "Our goal is to engage directly with policymakers, build relationships, and bridge the education gap to establish a common-sense regulatory framework."

ChainCatcher news, CoinGecko released the 2023 cryptocurrency industry lobbying spending rankings, with cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase topping the list with $2.16 million in spending. The details of the list are as follows: 1. Coinbase ($2.16 million); 2. Crypto.com ($1.53 million); 3. Blockchain Association ($1.47 million); 4. Binance ($1.19 million); 5. Kraken ($0.888 million); 6. a16z ($0.79 million); 7. Tether ($0.76 million); 8. Ripple ($0.71 million); 9. Crypto Council for Innovation ($0.71 million); 10. DeFi Education Fund ($0.60 million).

ChainCatcher news, according to Business Insider, as the U.S. presidential election year approaches and Congress continues to scrutinize BlackRock, the company is restructuring a key lobbying team that handles relationships with government officials and regulators. BlackRock's Global Head of Corporate Affairs, John Kelly, recently wrote in a company memo that the asset management giant is looking to hire a new Head of U.S. Government Affairs and Public Policy, as well as a new Head of State Government Affairs. The state-focused position will be responsible for working in "priority capital" to manage state-level relationships. Kelly stated that the company is facing "increasing reputational pressure in the U.S., along with a range of complex policy challenges."He noted that the company must "adjust its strategy and deploy more resources to address these challenges."

ChainCatcher news, Berenberg Capital Markets Chief Analyst Mark Palmer stated in a research report that his main reason for taking a "cautious stance" on Coinbase is the various regulatory actions taken against it by the United States, as well as the political resistance brought about by the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Hamas militants used cryptocurrency to fund recent attacks on Israel, which may hinder Coinbase's cryptocurrency lobbying efforts in the U.S.It is reported that over the past few years, Coinbase has significantly increased its lobbying efforts in the United States in hopes of introducing clearer and more cryptocurrency-friendly regulations.

ChainCatcher news, according to Barron's, Coinbase is leading a cryptocurrency lobbying effort aimed at garnering support from lawmakers to pass new regulations for the industry. Sources reveal that Coinbase is helping to cover the costs for over 50 executives from cryptocurrency companies to fly to Washington, D.C. to lobby lawmakers.Coinbase also plans to park an armored "cash truck" near the Capitol, which is essentially a mobile billboard.

ChainCatcher news, according to the political donation platform OpenSecrets data, in the first six months of 2023, Binance's spending on lobbying exceeded $1 million, which is almost equivalent to its total lobbying expenditure for the entire year of 2022.

ChainCatcher message, according to data from the organization OpenSecrets that tracks political donations, in the first half of 2023, Coinbase and Binance's lobbying expenditures in the U.S. Congress reached $2.4 million. Among them, Binance invested over $1 million to influence lawmakers on Capitol Hill, nearly matching its total expenditure for the entire year of 2022. Coinbase spent $1.4 million during the same period. In addition to Coinbase and Binance, other significant lobbying expenditures came from Ripple, Crypto.com, and the Blockchain Association.