Trump inauguration draws big crypto donations
Big crypto is joining big tech and many others in corporate America by donating millions toward President-elect Trump’s inauguration celebrations, FOX Business has learned.
Cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Kraken each donated $1 million to the Trump-Vance inaugural committee, the organization funding the three-day extravaganza of galas, parades and dinners celebrating Donald Trump and his VP-elect JD Vance’s big win in the November election, taking place in the days before and after their swearing in on January 20th.
Blockchain payments firm Ripple will also make a $5 million contribution in the crypto token XRP, the digital asset it uses to facilitate its cross-border payments business.
All three companies confirmed the donations to FOX Business. Another crypto outfit, MoonPay, a digital asset payment provider, told FOX Business it will also donate to the fund but declined to disclose an exact amount.
News of the crypto donations has not yet been reported.
The contributions make up a small part of the record $200 million already pledged to the inaugural committee from corporate and individual donors, surpassing the previous record of $107 million raised by Trump's first inaugural committee in 2017, and trouncing the $62 million raised by Biden's committee in 2021. A source on the Trump-Vance inaugural committee tells FOX Business they're confident they can reach $225 million by Inauguration Day.
The contributions from the crypto elite, many of whom are giving to a presidential inaugural fund for the first time, reflect the enthusiasm the industry has for Trump, who has promised a lighter regulatory touch than his predecessor Joe Biden. The industry spent over $200 million this election cycle, which included major contributions from Ripple, Coinbase and venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Executives including Kraken founder Jesse Powell and Andreessen Horowitz co-founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, were among Trump's largest individual donors.
A press rep for Andreessen Horowitz did not respond to requests for comment on whether the company plans to donate to the inaugural fund.
"Crypto innovation is shaping up to be as big, if not bigger, than the software and internet revolutions," Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi told FOX Business. "For the first time, we have a President who truly understands the potential of disruptive technology and embraces the crypto sector. We’re excited to continue to work with President-Elect Trump and his administration to push for long-overdue regulatory clarity and unlock this next wave of innovation."
Since being elected on November 5, Trump has already delivered on some of his promises to support the digital asset industry, including nominating the crypto-friendly Paul Atkins as the next chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. He also appointed David Sacks as the first ever crypto and AI 'czar', a role in which Sacks will bridge the gap between industry and regulators by working closely with them on policy initiatives, while heading up the Presidential Council of Advisors for Science and Technology.
"With trusted, knowledgeable crypto advocates like Paul Atkins and David Sacks appointed in the Trump Administration, the future of the crypto industry looks nothing but promising," Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said in a statement to FOX Business. "I'm optimistic we can finally move past the failed war on crypto waged by Elizabeth Warren's attack dog, Chair Gensler." Sitting SEC chairman Gary Gensler will depart on January 20, 2025, the same day as the inauguration ceremony.
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Trump has also filled his cabinet with crypto-friendly picks like his Treasury Secretary nominee Scott Bessent, who has been a vocal advocate of the transformative potential of crypto and blockchain technology, and Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick, the CEO of financial giant Cantor Fitzgerald, who is personally heavily invested in bitcoin.
In addition to crypto, big tech and their executives are also shelling out cash to Trump's inaugural fund, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and OpenAI's Sam Altman. Each donated $1 million to the fund. Additionally, Bezos and Zuckerberg are among the tech CEOs who have met with Trump in recent days at Mar-a-Lago.
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Earlier this week, Vlad Tenev, the CEO of trading platform Robinhood told FOX Business the company plans to donate $2 million to the inaugural committee.
The donations and one-on-ones with Trump represent a dramatic shift in tone of tech execs, many of whom had been outspoken critics of Trump prior to his re-election, as they seek to mend fences with their de-facto regulator.