The Donald Trump-supporting political action committee (PAC), “Trump 47,” has raised $7.5 million in cryptocurrency between July and September 2024. This significant amount, largely in Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), highlights the increasing involvement of the crypto industry in political campaigns.
Major Contributions from Crypto Executives
According to an Oct. 15 filing with the Federal Election Commission, numerous high-profile crypto industry leaders contributed millions to support Trump’s presidential campaign. Key donors include:
- David Bailey, CEO of BTC Media, who donated $498,000 in Bitcoin.
- Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s legal chief, contributed $300,000 in XRP.
- Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, co-founders of crypto exchange Gemini, each donated $1.1 million in BTC.
- Mike Belshe, CEO of crypto custodian BitGo, gave nearly $100,000 in Bitcoin.
- Chase Herro, co-founder of World Liberty Financial, a new Trump family crypto venture.
- Gary Cardone, CEO of Cardone Digital Ventures, contributed over $840,000 in BTC.
These substantial donations reflect the growing financial power of the crypto industry, particularly in shaping political campaigns.
Crypto’s Expanding Influence in US Politics
The “Trump 47” PAC isn’t the only pro-Trump organization attracting large donations from crypto leaders. Another super PAC, “Right For America,” has also seen massive contributions from the crypto space. Founders of the venture capital firm a16z, Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, each donated $2.5 million to the PAC, according to Bloomberg. “Right For America” has raised a total of $38.6 million this election cycle.
Notably, some crypto leaders are backing other candidates. Chris Larsen, Ripple’s co-founder, donated $1 million in XRP to support Vice President Kamala Harris through the pro-Harris PAC, “Future Forward.”
Crypto’s Rising Political Influence
A recent report from nonprofit watchdog group Public Citizen revealed that nearly half of the corporate donations in the 2024 election cycle are coming from the crypto industry. Contributions from the sector are about 13 times higher than they were in the previous presidential election cycle.
One of the largest crypto-related super PACs, Fairshake, has raised more than $200 million this cycle. It has spent $7 million on media campaigns supporting candidates and $2 million opposing Democratic incumbents, according to a September filing.
