Cryptocurrency firms and their allies have emerged as the vanguard of political spending for the 2024 U.S. presidential election, spearheading a record-breaking $1.5 billion influx from top donors.
What Happened: The shift in campaign finance signals a new era where digital asset companies are aggressively vying for political influence that could reshape the regulatory landscape.
Leading the charge is Timothy Mellon, a reclusive railroad magnate and heir to the Mellon banking fortune, who has contributed an eye-watering $165 million.
The bulk of his donations, $125 million, went to Make America Great Again Inc., a super PAC supporting Donald Trump's presidential campaign.
Hot on Mellon's heels is Coinbase Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN), the cryptocurrency exchange giant, which has invested $91.1 million in the political arena.
The company directed $86 million to Fairshake, a pro-crypto super PAC, clearly signaling the digital asset industry's intent to shape its regulatory future.
Also Read: Bitcoin ETFs Surge Past $18B In Net Inflows, Ethereum ETFs Have Bled $478M: What Is Going On?
Kenneth Griffin, the billionaire hedge fund manager and CEO of Citadel, has poured $75.7 million into various Republican causes, including $15 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund supporting GOP House candidates.
The crypto industry's political ambitions are further evidenced by other significant players.
Fintech firm Ripple Labs (CRYPTO: XRP) has invested $49 million in various political causes, while AH Capital Management, a venture capital firm with substantial crypto interests led by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, has contributed $48.5 million.
On the Democratic side, former New York City mayor and media mogul Michael Bloomberg has donated $41 million, primarily to support Kamala Harris's presidential campaign and Democratic congressional candidates.
The scale of these contributions suggests a calculated effort to influence the regulatory framework that will shape the future of digital assets in America.
What's Next: The upcoming Benzinga Future of Digital Assets event on Nov. 19 is set to become a critical forum for dissecting these trends, with industry leaders and policymakers expected to debate the long-term consequences of this newfound political clout.
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加密货币公司及其盟友已成为2024年美国总统大选政治支出的先锋，率先从主要捐助者那里涌入了创纪录的15亿美元。
发生了什么：竞选财务的转变预示着一个新时代，数字资产公司正在积极争夺可能重塑监管格局的政治影响力。
领导者是蒂莫西·梅隆，他是一位隐居的铁路巨头，也是梅隆银行财富的继承人，他捐款了令人眼花缭乱的1.65亿美元。
他的大部分捐款，即1.25亿美元，捐给了支持唐纳德·特朗普总统竞选的超级PAC “让美国再次伟大公司”。
紧随梅隆大学的是加密货币交易所巨头Coinbase Inc.（纳斯达克股票代码：COIN），该公司已在政治舞台上投资了9,110万美元。
该公司向支持加密的超级PAC Fairshake投入了8600万美元，这清楚地表明了数字资产行业塑造其监管未来的意图。
另请阅读：比特币ETF的净流入量飙升至180亿美元以上，以太坊ETF流失了4.78亿美元：发生了什么？
亿万富翁对冲基金经理兼Citadel首席执行官肯尼思·格里芬已向共和党的各种事业注资7,570万美元，其中包括向支持共和党众议院候选人的国会领导基金注资1500万美元。
其他重要参与者进一步证明了加密行业的政治野心。
金融科技公司瑞波实验室（加密货币：XRP）已向各种政治事业投资了4900万美元，而由马克·安德森和本·霍洛维茨领导的拥有大量加密利益的风险投资公司AH Capital Management已出资4,850万美元。
在民主党方面，前纽约市市长兼媒体大亨迈克尔·布隆伯格捐赠了4,100万美元，主要用于支持卡马拉·哈里斯的总统竞选和民主党国会候选人。
这些捐款的规模表明，有人精心策划地努力影响监管框架，这将塑造美国数字资产的未来。
下一步是什么：即将于11月19日举行的Benzinga数字资产未来活动将成为剖析这些趋势的重要论坛，预计行业领导者和决策者将就这种新出现的政治影响力的长期后果进行辩论。
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