White House "Get on board": The Lobbying Path of the Encryption Industry

Just over a year ago, David Bailey and a group of Bitcoin executives pitched Bitcoin to Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, looking for a "savior." For years, cryptocurrency companies have faced a harsh crackdown in Washington, D.C., facing lawsuits, regulatory threats, and prosecutions. Trump had previously called Bitcoin a "scam," but he welcomed these executives to his private club as the industry suddenly caught his attention.

Bailey brought representatives from several large Bitcoin mining companies to pitch the economic benefits of Bitcoin to Trump and made a bold request: could Trump post supportive messages on social media? That night, Trump posted a message on Truth Social that aligned with what the executives had proposed.

This post is one of the earliest successes in a high-risk lobbying effort within the encryption industry. This campaign invested huge amounts of money in Trump and reaped substantial returns. Since Trump's election, the price of Bitcoin has skyrocketed to over $100,000, making a fortune for the executives who supported his campaign. Crypto advocates, who were sidelined by Washington during the Biden administration, can now approach the Trump White House, which has quickly lifted the regulatory crackdown on the industry.

All of this stems from one of the most intense lobbying battles in recent history. For months, industry executives, professional lobbyists, campaign staff, and Trump's business partners and family members have meticulously orchestrated a decentralized but remarkably effective "influencing campaign," transforming Trump from an outspoken Bitcoin skeptic into one of the most important supporters in the encryption field.

From "scam" to "modern art"

Enthusiasts of encryption have a term that describes the process of converting Bitcoin skeptics into believers, which they call "orange pill". Trump is a primary target.

Trump's attitude towards encryption began to soften after he interacted with his long-time business partner Bill Zanker. Zanker pitched a series of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to Trump. These NFTs went on sale in December 2022 and sold out almost immediately. Trump made over $7 million in revenue from the NFT sales.

In November 2023, cryptocurrency enthusiasts who purchased NFTs were invited to Mar-a-Lago to meet Trump. Trump seemed uncertain about how to describe this new financial product, calling it "modern art or whatever." But he was sure he made a lot of money from these images sold for $99 each.

"Courtship" During the Campaign

In early 2024, a small group of encryption executives began to "woo" Trump. Leading the effort was Bailey, who organized one of the largest company meetings in the industry. He worked closely with Tracy Hoyos-López, a Bitcoin advocate and former prosecutor with valuable private connections.

Bailey and Trump held their first meeting in May 2024 at Trump Tower. They believe that encryption investors could become an important voting bloc, comparable to supporters of the gun industry. Bailey presented a chart showing the increase in Bitcoin prices during Trump's first term, which he referred to as the "Trump pump."

Soon, millions of dollars in encryption funds began to flow into Trump's campaign team. The founders of Kraken and Gemini donated over $1 million each to groups supporting Trump. In June, venture capitalist David Sacks held a fundraising event for Trump in San Francisco.

Bailey arranged for Bitcoin mining executives to visit Mar-a-Lago in June and stated that he has raised $30 million to support Trump's campaign efforts. He also secured Trump to attend the annual Bitcoin conference in Nashville as a keynote speaker.

In front of thousands of cheering supporters in Nashville, Trump promised to establish a "strategic national Bitcoin reserve" and declared: "I will be the pro-innovation, pro-Bitcoin president that America needs."

"Battle for Supremacy" After Victory

After Trump's victory, almost every figure in the encryption world is vying for the opportunity to get on board the White House. Cryptocurrency companies and their executives spent $9.9 million on lobbying in the first three months of 2025.

Ripple donated nearly $5 million to Trump's inauguration committee, making it the second-largest donation received by the committee. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse encouraged Trump and his advisors to expand the initial proposal for a Bitcoin reserve put forward in Nashville, hoping the U.S. would reserve other types of encryption, including Ripple's XRP.

However, some industry peers are dissatisfied with this. Charles Hoskinson mocked Ripple's executives, saying they "spent $5 million to have dinner with Trump."

"I made a commitment"

In March, Trump announced on Truth Social that he had instructed a presidential task force to "advance the encryption strategic reserve" plan, which would include XRP and other digital currencies. This news shocked the encryption industry.

Amid strong opposition behind the scenes, crypto czar Sacks posted on X, stating that Trump is planning to establish a reserve that includes "Bitcoin and other top encryption currencies." Trump then revised his original post, expanding the list of currencies to include Bitcoin as well as Ethereum.

Ultimately, the reserve plan took a milder form. On March 6, Trump issued an executive order establishing a federal reserve that includes Bitcoin obtained by the government through legal seizures, and promised to consider acquiring more Bitcoin in the future.

Trump asked Sacks while reviewing documents in the Oval Office: "Is this something you completely believe in?" Sacks replied: "I believe in it one hundred percent." Trump then asked: "And I made a commitment, right?" Sacks responded: "Of course." Subsequently, Trump signed the order.