The policy infrastructure of the crypto industry has matured significantly over the past decade.

From a single think tank in Washington to a comprehensive network today, comprising trade associations, advocacy groups, and specialized lobbying entities dedicated to specific ecosystems.

The current landscape encompasses both broad-based industry coalitions and niche advocates focused on individual blockchains, each playing distinct roles in advancing regulatory clarity.

In February 2026, the Hyperliquid Policy Center was formally established, becoming the latest entrant; prior to that, the Solana Policy Institute had debuted in 2025.

Let’s dive deeper: which institutions are shaping the power dynamics within Washington’s crypto policy ecosystem?

Coin Center (2014)

The earliest crypto policy think tank.

Coin Center has cultivated deep roots in Washington for over a decade, consistently advocating for open blockchain networks and user rights, and remains the most ideologically libertarian institution in the industry.

Differing from organizations centered on industry interests, Coin Center prioritizes representing individual users: defending self-custody rights, privacy protections, and the right to use crypto assets without being burdened by onerous tax compliance.

Its core objectives for 2026 include:

· Advancing the “Keep Your Coins Act,” banning federal prohibitions on self-custody;

· Supporting the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA), clarifying that developers who do not hold user funds should not be classified as money transmitters;

· Proposing comprehensive tax reform: establishing a $600 threshold for small-transaction tax exemption, simplifying cost basis reporting, and taxing staking rewards only upon sale—not upon receipt.

Taxation of staking rewards is a universal pain point across the industry.

Currently, the U.S. IRS treats newly generated tokens from staking as immediate income, forcing validators to pay taxes even before selling any assets—resulting in prohibitively high compliance costs.

Coin Center argues that staking rewards should be treated like other yield-generating assets: taxable only upon disposal.

Blockchain Association (BA, 2018)

The largest crypto trade association in the United States, representing over 100 member organizations, including exchanges, mining firms, DeFi protocols, and infrastructure providers.

If Coin Center speaks from principle, the Blockchain Association operates through coalition-building: aligning member interests and translating them into legislative priorities.

Current focus areas include:

· Tax parity, market structure legislation, and DeFi protection;

· Formal release of tax principles calling for small-transaction exemptions, treating stablecoins as cash equivalents, and localizing perpetual contracts;

· Full support for BRCA and broader developer protection provisions.

DeFi Education Fund (DEF, 2021)

Originally founded with Uniswap governance funding, DEF is dedicated exclusively to decentralized finance.

Its work revolves around three pillars: protecting software developers, empowering DeFi users, and upholding permissionless blockchains.

On the developer front:

DEF contends that builders should be exempt from liability when third parties abuse tools, opposing forced integration into regulatory frameworks designed for custodial intermediaries. Aligning with Coin Center and the Blockchain Association, DEF strongly supports BRCA (the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act).

On the user front:

Advocating for self-custody rights, privacy safeguards, reduced reliance on trusted third parties, and emphasizing financial inclusion—permissionless networks enable users to bypass gatekeepers and freely access financial services.

DEF’s approach is more legal and research-driven: filing amicus briefs, submitting regulatory comments, publishing educational breakdowns, operating the high-impact DeFi Debrief newsletter, and continuously pushing for BRCA’s integration into broader market structure legislation.

Solana Policy Institute (2025)

The first dedicated policy institution for a public blockchain ecosystem, co-founded by a former CEO of the DeFi Education Fund and a former CEO of the Blockchain Association.

While sharing core industry goals (developer protection, staking tax reform), it also closely aligns with Solana’s strategic ecosystem ambitions.

Core agenda highlights:

· Project Open: driving pilot initiatives for security tokenization, enabling issuers to register equity as digital tokens on-chain for instant settlement and transparent ownership records, positioning Solana as infrastructure for expanding traditional capital markets;

· Supporting the “Equal Opportunity for All Investors Act”: broadening the definition of qualified investors beyond wealth thresholds to include knowledge-based criteria. The institute notes that current rules exclude 87% of Americans from private markets.

Hyperliquid Policy Center (2026)

The newest and most vertically focused crypto policy entity, established with a $29 million grant from the Hyper Foundation, with one singular mission: enabling compliant perpetual futures trading within the U.S. domestic market.

Led by a former Chief Policy Officer of the Blockchain Association, HPC precisely targets the regulatory gap surrounding decentralized derivatives—the core business of Hyperliquid and one of the fastest-growing segments in crypto.

Organizational goal:

Educating policymakers on the mechanics of non-custodial trading protocols and advancing regulatory frameworks that eliminate the need for intermediary custody.

Timing is strategically critical:

With the Clarity Act stalled in the Senate, HPC seizes the window to shape regulators’ understanding of DeFi derivatives.

Core argument:

Perpetual contract markets will inevitably migrate overseas or onto decentralized protocols—America must either establish a competitive framework or cede the market entirely.

Data shows perpetual contract trading volume reached $92.7 trillion in 2025.

Industry-wide Consensus and Divergence

Although the five institutions differ in scope and positioning, their core objectives align closely:

Shared goals:

· Developer protection: nearly all support BRCA, clearly stating that developers not holding user funds are not money transmitters;

· Staking tax reform: block rewards/staking rewards taxed upon sale, not upon receipt;

· User self-custody rights; small-transaction tax exemptions.

Divergent directions:

· Coin Center: adheres strictly to principle, focusing on privacy and user rights;

· Blockchain Association: coordinates interests across 100+ industry members;

· DeFi Education Fund: deeply specialized in DeFi-specific regulation and legal support;

· Solana / Hyperliquid policy entities: ecosystem-specific, with agendas tightly aligned to their respective core businesses (security tokenization, perpetual contracts).

These institutions collectively define the foundational values of the industry while preserving dedicated avenues for advancing key niche issues—marking a transition in U.S. crypto policy from unified advocacy to a more specialized, ecosystem-driven, and granular form of policy competition.

Original Title: Mapping Crypto’s Lobbying Layer

Original Author: David Christopher, Bankless

Original Translation: Saoirse, Foresight News