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Key Takeaways
- Crypto firms spent nearly $8 million lobbying specifically on the Clarity Act, part of over $13 million in total industry lobbying during the period.
- Coinbase led spending at about $2.2 million, ranking above Goldman Sachs in securities-lobbying totals tracked by OpenSecrets.org.
- A former SEC official pointed to internal industry infighting and a crowded, fractured lobbying effort as factors that may have undercut the push.
The crypto industry directed nearly $8 million toward direct lobbying on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act in the first half of 2026, according to a review of federal lobbying disclosures, an effort that ultimately failed to secure the bill’s passage through the Senate.
The spending was part of more than $13 million the sector spent on lobbying overall during the same six-month period.
A Separate Spending Category From Campaign Donations
The lobbying spending is distinct from the more than $100 million in campaign funds crypto political action committees have devoted to electing favorable lawmakers, and separate from the tens of millions the industry spends annually on advocacy groups such as the Digital Chamber, Blockchain Association and Crypto Council for Innovation.
Lobbying refers specifically to registered advocates who meet directly with federal officials writing legislation and policy, a narrower and legally distinct category of political spending from campaign contributions or general advocacy.
About half of the registered lobbyists working on the bill were direct employees of crypto firms, with the remainder split between outside lobbying firms and the industry’s trade associations.
Of the roughly $8 million tied to the Clarity Act specifically, about $2.4 million went to third-party lobbying firms and $2.1 million supported lobbyists employed by trade associations, with the remainder funding crypto companies’ own in-house lobbying operations.
Disclosure filings do not consistently specify which lobbying efforts were tied to the Clarity Act specifically. Some of the remaining $5.4 million in lobbying spending not explicitly linked to the bill could also have touched on the same legislative push, given vague filing descriptions such as “issues relating to cryptocurrency” or “financial services.”
Other spending was more clearly tied to separate priorities, including tax legislation, digital mining policy and direct engagement with the SEC and CFTC.
The Crypto Council for Innovation, which spent $610,000 on lobbying, described its work as covering a range of topic areas including tax and market structure. The Blockchain Association’s chief policy officer, Lindsay Fraser, said in a statement that the group’s lobbyists met with congressional staff and federal officials more than 380 times.
“Joined us for five fly-ins and 15 staff briefings.”
Coinbase Led Industry Spending by a Wide Margin
Coinbase spent about $2.2 million on lobbying that included advocacy for the Clarity Act, while Kraken spent almost $1 million, according to the companies’ disclosures. Other significant spenders on the bill included Digital Currency Group, Jump Crypto and Paradigm.
Coinbase spokesperson Julia Krieger defended the company’s spending as productive despite the bill’s failure, saying the effort helped bring comprehensive, bipartisan market-structure legislation to the brink of passage and laid groundwork for regulatory action now progressing at the SEC and CFTC.
“Washington is a long game.”
Coinbase’s lobbying spending placed it among the top 10 companies in the broader securities and investment lobbying category tracked by OpenSecrets.org, a nonprofit that compiles federal lobbying data, ranking above Goldman Sachs and venture firm Andreessen Horowitz.
Looking beyond spending explicitly tied to the Clarity Act, four crypto firms cleared $1 million in overall crypto-related lobbying: Coinbase, followed by $1.5 million from Andreessen Horowitz, $1.4 million from Binance and $1.2 million from Crypto.com.
Where the Money Went Among Outside Firms
Industry companies generally spent the largest share of their individual lobbying budgets on in-house employees rather than outside firms, though money sent to professional lobbying shops reached at least 42 distinct firms.
Checkmate Government Relations, a relatively new North Carolina-based firm with ties to Republican and Trump administration circles, collected about $1.8 million in crypto-related lobbying fees during the period, most of it from Binance.
Sternhell Group, run by Capitol Hill veteran Alex Sternhell, collected $660,000, with three of its four most lucrative clients coming from the crypto sector. Neither firm responded to requests for comment. Other notable outside firms working on the industry’s legislative campaign included Michael Best Strategies, Goldstein Policy Solutions and Phronesis DC, each receiving at least $200,000.
Critics Point to a Fractured Lobbying Effort
Some observers of the Clarity Act negotiations said the sheer number of lobbyists involved, sometimes crowding the same meetings with lawmakers and administration officials, may have worked against the industry’s unified messaging.
Corey Frayer, a former SEC official now serving as director of investor protection at the Consumer Federation of America, was blunt in his assessment.
“Very big internal infighting and a lack of unification among the industry.”
Frayer argued more broadly that crypto companies often disregard guidance from the compliance professionals and outside law firms they hire, a pattern he said likely extended to how the industry weighed the advice of its own paid lobbyists during the Clarity Act push.
What the Industry Takes Away From the Setback
Despite the bill’s failure to clear the Senate, the effort marked the furthest comprehensive crypto market-structure legislation has advanced in Congress, and industry participants point to the bipartisan agreement reached on some provisions as a foundation for any renewed push.
Whether the bill could be revived during this year’s brief lame-duck session after the midterms remains uncertain even among optimists within the industry.
With legislative momentum stalled, lobbying activity has shifted toward the SEC and CFTC as both agencies advance crypto-related rules through their existing authority. Fraser said the Blockchain Association is now focused on aligning its resources with members’ priorities following the Senate vote, including deepening engagement with the two regulators.
