WASHINGTON – In the first years after the founding CoinbaseCEO Brian Armstrong shied away from Washington, DC. But as his ambitions for his crypto exchange grew, so did his need to ingratiate himself on Capitol Hill.

“About five or six years ago we realized that crypto was getting so big that we needed to be really actively involved in policy efforts, so I started going to DC,” Armstrong, who founded Coinbase in 2012, told in September CNBC, after a day of meetings with political leaders.

It's now practically Armstrong's full-time job, and Coinbase's money is spread across the nation's capital. The company was one of the largest corporate donors this election cycle, giving more than $75 million to a group called Fairshake and its affiliated PACs, including a new $25 million commitment to support the crypto-friendly super PAC in the 2026 midterm elections . Armstrong has personally contributed more than $1.3 million to a mix of candidates across all ballots.

Tech's biggest names have been congregating in Washington for years, trying to advance their agendas as their market capitalization grows, but for Coinbase the issue is potentially existential.

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler sued the company last year over allegations it was selling unregistered securities. A judge has since ruled that the case should be tried by a jury. Coinbase has vociferously defended itself and also stated that it wants to work with regulators to craft an appropriate law to regulate the emerging industry.

Meanwhile, Coinbase faces a growing list of competitors.

In the company's most recent quarterly earnings report last week, Coinbase missed top and bottom lines due to lower transaction revenue and a decline in subscription and service revenue. Shares plunged 15%.

Data from CCData shows that the exchange is losing market share to industry competitors such as Crypto.com. And investors have many new ways to access Bitcoin and Ethereum since the SEC approved spot funds this year. BlackRock ETF chief Samara Cohen told CNBC that 75% of Bitcoin buyers are crypto investors new to Wall Street.

Washington can't save Coinbase from competition, but the company is betting that with sympathetic lawmakers it can be a leader in a thriving industry rather than face the constant threat of lawsuits and Wells notices.

Armstrong said his D.C. visits typically occurred once or twice a year. Then it had to be at least a quarterly event. And the pace has only increased.

“In the beginning, a lot of people didn’t know what crypto was,” Armstrong said of his previous travels. Now, “has the discussion actually progressed to how can we adopt clear rules and create laws in the United States?”

Paul Grewal, Coinbase's chief legal officer, attended a fundraiser in San Francisco in June that raised $12 million for former President Donald Trump. The host was venture capitalist David Sacks, a former Trump critic who became an outspoken supporter when he became the Republican nominee.

Grewal later attended a fundraiser for the former president in Nashville, Tennessee, in July.

Trump has never shown much sensitivity to the nuances of cryptocurrencies, but has welcomed financial support for the industry. He won plaudits over the summer when he promised to fire Gensler as SEC chief if he won.

Grewal told CNBC that he has had “many conversations” behind closed doors with both the Trump camp and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign. Before Election Day on Tuesday, the candidates were effectively in a dead heat.

“What I think we’re hearing from both campaigns is that they get it,” Grewal said. “They understand that in swing state after swing state there are enough voters interested in crypto that the candidate and his campaigns must give voice to the concerns of those voters by adopting sensible rules on crypto, sensible laws from the Congress etc. support that is very encouraging.”

Grewal said that Trump “has expressed this pro-crypto view before” but said Harris recognizes the need for an “agenda focused on promoting sensible rules for crypto as well as any other technology.”

But Coinbase has stayed out of the presidential campaign, focusing its finances solely on congressional races as it seeks to help assemble a group of lawmakers with positive views on the industry.

The Stand With Crypto Alliance, launched by Coinbase last year, has developed a rating system for House and Senate candidates across the country.

In the Ohio Senate race, for example, the organization gives incumbent Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown, who chairs the Banking Committee, an “F” grade, while his Republican rival Bernie Moreno, a blockchain entrepreneur, receives an “A.” About $40 million in cryptocurrency funds were used to defeat Brown, and a PAC has funded five ads aimed at raising Moreno's profile. The race is very close and crucial to deciding which party will control the Senate.

Stand with Crypto, which has 1.8 million advocates nationwide, is also working to mobilize digital asset owners living in swing states. That effort included a cross-country bus tour of battlefields to encourage those residents to vote.

“Given the razor-thin margin of victory in the 2020 election, it is truly extraordinary that crypto is not just an issue, but potentially a defining issue heading into the presidential cycle,” said Faryar Shirzad, Chief Policy Officer at Coinbase. said in an interview.

Shirzad said that he and his team concluded last year that the only way to get politics out of crypto was to “build our own political operation.” He said the goal is to “neutralize the politicization of the crypto issue and talk about it objectively.”

Coinbase is far from alone. Almost half of all corporate money raised in this election came from crypto companies.

Fairshake, one of the top-spending PACs this cycle, told CNBC that it raised about $170 million and paid out about $135 million this election.

Ripple Labs is another of Fairshake’s largest political donors.

The company, which has spent more than $100 million fighting Gensler, has donated around $50 million to Fairshake. Several leaders also helped bring a mix of Democratic and Republican candidates to the polls across the country.

Lauren Belive, Ripple's head of U.S. public policy, told CNBC at a fintech conference in Las Vegas that the company was motivated by the SEC's overreach.

“We really wanted to put people in office who could learn about this technology and understand it, because we need Congress to act and create federal law, not this enforcement system,” Belive said. She added that the regulator has taken more than 100 enforcement actions against cryptocurrency-focused companies.

The Stand with Crypto bus tour culminated in a rally at The Black Cat in Washington on a Wednesday evening in September.

The popular music venue has no windows and has an Alice in Wonderland vibe with its mix of purple-painted walls and exposed brick, as well as a black-and-white checkered floor.

As the music blared and the drinks flowed, free “Stand with Crypto” merchandise was handed out to attendees. Excess goodie bags were generously distributed to those who wanted to take home extras.

Armstrong got out of his black SUV just outside the venue to speak to CNBC. He wore a suit and tie, a stark contrast to his fellow attendees. Armstrong said he is confident about the upcoming election.

“The crypto voter has now become an important part of this election,” Armstrong said. “I think the crypto voter is really real, and we’ll see what happens in November.”

In addition to Armstrong, Consensys CEO Joe Lubin and Rep. Wiley Nickel, D-N.C., also spoke at the rally. Most of the remarks were inaudible amid the crowd's thunderous cheers.

When headliner The Chainsmokers took the stage, there was silence in the audience. The band opened with their 2017 classic “Paris” and the audience agreed with the refrain: “If we go down, we go down together.”