Bloomberg: $263 million in political donations ready as the crypto industry ramps up for the US midterm elections

Original Title: Crypto's Political Machine Amasses $263 Million to Rival Big Oil

Original Authors: Annie Massa, Olga Kharif, David Pan, Bloomberg

Translated by: Luffy, Foresight News

After achieving success in the 2024 U.S. presidential election, the crypto industry is ramping up its investment for the 2026 midterm elections.

According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings and public statements, several crypto-focused Super Political Action Committees (SPACs) are raising about $263 million in funds. According to OpenSecrets data, this amount is nearly double the largest SPAC Fairshake's 2024 investment and slightly higher than the total spending of the entire oil and gas industry in the last election cycle.

After the crypto industry made a major push in 2024, the Republican Party gained control of both chambers of Congress, lawmakers passed multiple bills supported by the crypto industry, and appointed crypto-friendly regulators to key positions. This influence was evident again last week: President Donald Trump pardoned Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao, who had previously admitted to violating U.S. anti-money laundering laws and was sentenced to four months in prison during the Biden administration.

Legislative victories and the Trump family's embrace of crypto have prompted some newly established SPACs to shift away from previous strategies, more explicitly supporting the Republican Party to help it consolidate control of Congress.

The crypto industry is also leveraging political donations to advance a series of legislative and regulatory priorities, with the recent core focus being the crypto market structure bill. This bill would overhaul the regulatory framework for digital assets and could grant greater authority to the more crypto-friendly Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

SPACs' Midterm Election Budgets

To push the bill forward, about 12 top crypto industry executives traveled to Washington last week. Despite ongoing government shutdown negotiations, they held an hour-long meeting with a group of senior Republican senators and an even longer meeting with Democratic senators, including Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

"The industry's success in 2024 has built a roadmap—whether you're an industry CEO or an ordinary user, it's now proven that crypto has a voice and can influence elections," said Cody Carbone, CEO of Washington lobbying group The Digital Chamber. "There will be more participants in the future, and more money will be invested."

Crypto companies and executives are supporting policymakers and Trump's initiatives in various ways. Some crypto companies have already entered into business deals with the Trump family's crypto ventures, while others have donated to the January inauguration and the June military parade. In addition, several companies are funding the new $300 million White House banquet hall project. According to the White House, these include Coinbase, Ripple, and the U.S. division of stablecoin giant Tether.

U.S. President Donald Trump displays a model of the planned Arc de Triomphe at a dinner with business executives, highlighting the new White House banquet hall project

Besides the White House, SPACs are also a focus for members of Congress, who have the power to draft industry-related legislation.

According to public statements and FEC data, Fairshake remains the largest crypto SPAC, holding $141 million in funds as of the end of June. OpenSecrets data shows that the organization spent over $133 million in 2024 to support crypto-friendly candidates, making it one of the highest single-issue spenders in the last election cycle. Its supporters include major U.S. crypto companies such as Coinbase and Ripple, as well as venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.

In 2024, Fairshake and its two affiliated groups attempted to make crypto-friendly policies a bipartisan issue. For example, the organization invested about $10 million each in Democrats Elissa Slotkin and Ruben Gallego, helping them win Senate seats in Michigan and Arizona, respectively. Both senators were among 18 Democrats who voted for the GENIUS Act, which paved the way for stablecoins favored by the crypto industry to be more widely integrated into the financial system.

But even in 2024, most of Fairshake's election-phase funds were still used to support Republicans, including spending $40 million to successfully defeat then-Senate Banking Committee Chairman, Ohio Democrat Sherrod Brown.

In November 2024, Senate candidate Elissa Slotkin speaks to supporters at an election night event in Detroit

This time, there are more SPACs, some of which are more explicitly aligned with Republican candidates.

Last month, the crypto project World Liberty Financial, co-founded by the Trump family and presidential envoy Steve Witkoff's family, announced its support for the Digital Freedom Fund SPAC. This PAC was founded in August by Gemini exchange co-founders Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss, who stated on X that they would donate $21 million in bitcoin to support advocates of President Trump's crypto agenda in the primaries and midterm elections. According to sources, the organization plans to target Sherrod Brown, who is seeking to return to the Senate.

In July, Gemini co-founders Cameron Winklevoss (left) and Tyler Winklevoss (right) speak with President Donald Trump at the White House GENIUS Act signing ceremony

Another newly established group is the First Principles Digital PAC, which describes itself as a "Republican-led, Republican-focused organization dedicated to electing pro-crypto leaders." Led by Republican strategist Jason Tillman and established after the 2024 election, FEC filings show it had about $954,100 in cash reserves as of the end of June. The organization has already supported Mike Rogers, who will run for a Senate seat in Michigan in 2026.

Recently, Fellowship PAC announced its establishment in September and pledged a $100 million donation. Its donors have not yet been disclosed, but initial filings show its treasurer is an executive at financial firm Cantor Fitzgerald—which was previously led by Trump administration Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Representatives for Digital Freedom Fund, Fellowship, Fairshake, and First Principles Digital PAC all declined to comment.

The biggest wildcard is Tether. The stablecoin company, headquartered in El Salvador, has close ties to Cantor Fitzgerald. The New York Times reports that Fellowship PAC's supporters are expected to include Tether, which recently established a U.S. entity.

In August this year, Tether announced it would launch a domestic U.S. product and hired former Trump core crypto policy advisor Bo Hines to lead the effort.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said in an interview last week that the company is in talks with several PACs about cooperation. Foreign companies are prohibited from donating to SPACs, but Tether's new U.S. foothold may qualify it to make donations.

On October 2, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino speaks at the Token2049 conference in Singapore

Faced with the crypto industry's funding offensive, Democrats are increasingly concerned.

Eric Baulsbaugh, who worked for the campaigns of Elizabeth Warren and Hillary Clinton, serves as executive director of the newly formed group Open Frontier, which aims to align more progressive voices with the crypto industry.

"Many people in my camp are still trying to understand this industry," Baulsbaugh said. "Right now, there isn't a reliable spokesperson, and the crypto industry's credibility has been severely damaged."

When crypto executives visited Washington to meet with lawmakers last week, partisan divisions were evident. Chainlink Labs co-founder Sergey Nazarov, who attended the meetings, said that Republicans—including Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott of South Carolina—clearly expressed alignment with industry priorities; while Democrats raised sharp questions about crypto's use in money laundering and decentralized finance.

"I don't think Democrats really understand our industry yet—they're worried about illicit finance issues," Nazarov said.

Others point out that the industry's massive funding and newfound political influence are forcing at least some Democrats to reconsider their positions. Even previously tough critic Brown has softened his rhetoric.

"Crypto has become a part of the American economy and is increasingly popular in Ohio and across the country," Brown's campaign manager Patrick Eisenhower said in a statement. As more people adopt digital assets, Brown hopes to ensure "it can expand opportunities, improve the lives of Ohioans, and not put them at risk."

In 2024, Senator Sherrod Brown at a Senate campaign event in Ohio

The demands of crypto industry executives go beyond Republicans' desire to pass the market structure bill before the midterms—they also include adjusting crypto tax policies, anti-money laundering and sanctions-related rules, and the regulatory framework for decentralized exchanges.

Some donors are also focusing on state and local elections, such as the New York City mayoral race. Crypto entrepreneur Brock Pierce donated over $1 million to groups supporting Eric Adams just days before Adams withdrew from the race.

In the view of Chainlink Labs' Nazarov, there is a common thread in meetings with politicians. "They realize the economic value of this industry is huge, so they must clarify how to respond," he said. "The industry will continue to grow, and they need to develop the right response."