Crypto industry spends $176 million on US election races — The Japan Times
The crypto industry has spent about $176 million on more than 100 US midterm election races, seeking to build a bipartisan coalition of allies in Congress to advance its interests. The Japan Times reports.
The largest cryptocurrency super PAC, Fairshake, and its affiliated committees had spent about $150.8 million on the campaign as of October 20. Other crypto groups spent approximately $25 million. Fairshake said that 53 of the 58 candidates it backed in primaries or special elections this year won and will appear on ballots on November 3.
Support for candidates
The main financiers of the political committees are Coinbase, Ripple, and venture firm Andreessen Horowitz. According to the publication, these expenditures are intended to help the industry build long-term relationships with elected officials rather than persuade voters to support digital currencies.
Super PACs can raise and spend unlimited amounts, but they are not allowed to coordinate directly with election campaigns. Fairshake-affiliated groups' advertising materials mostly do not mention cryptocurrencies: they are distributed by related committees called Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress, while the videos often focus on taxes and immigration.
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Bet on legislation
The industry is seeking the passage of the Clarity Act, a bill that would transfer oversight of cryptocurrencies to the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The document did not advance to a final vote during the current session of Congress. JPMorgan analysts noted that without this law, regulatory decisions made during Donald Trump's presidency could be reversed by the next administration.
Fairshake supports House of Representatives candidates from both parties, but in Senate races it decided to fund only Republicans after Democrats blocked the advancement of the Clarity Act. Their objections concerned an ethics provision that could require the Trump family to sell cryptocurrency assets.
One of the crypto industry's main targets has been former Senate Banking Committee chairman Sherrod Brown, who is running for the Senate again from Ohio. According to AdImpact, the industry has already spent more than $68 million on this race. Brown campaign manager Patrick Eisenhauer said that special interests fear the candidate's intention to challenge the system and protect Ohio workers.
