Crypto PACs are pouring money into 2024 elections
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Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
Crypto is increasingly throwing its weight behind industry-friendly candidates.
The big picture: Crypto super political action committees, commonly known as PACs, have raised more than $100 million for 2024 congressional elections, according to a recent report by Public Citizen.
- Coinbase and Ripple have accounted for roughly half that.
- And efforts to this point would appear to be making a difference.
The latest: On Friday, Stand With Crypto, the nonprofit advocacy group started by Coinbase, announced its intent to raise more funds for its own PAC targeting House and Senate elections.
- Stand With Crypto's bid to build an election war chest comes less than a year after the group's debut last summer.
- Industry firms are already giving.
Zoom in: Stand With Crypto has endorsed two Democrats and three Republicans:
- Shomari Figures, a Democrat running for Congress in Alabama's Second District, and Eddy Morales, a Democrat running for Congress in Oregon's Third District.
- Troy Downing, a Republican running for Congress in Montana's Second District, Jim Banks, a Republican running for Senate in Indiana, and Jim Justice, a Republican running for Senate in West Virginia.
All those candidates get an "A" rating on their crypto stance, per Stand With Crypto's database of over 1,000 politicians.
- Rep. Banks has been the beneficiary of at least one crypto PAC.
Some candidates, including former President Trump, are wielding crypto to create a wedge between them and their opponents, in what looks like a play for what crypto voter base exists.
- Meanwhile, the industry is grappling with the conflicts around crypto enthusiasts becoming single-issue voters.
Our thought bubble: The more crypto-friendly folks land in congressional seats, the greater the odds of passing legislation the industry likes.
- The revised text of the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, or Fit21, was put forth Friday to be considered for a floor vote in the House this month.
Momentum appears to be building, with House Republicans voting to overturn SEC guidance on an accounting rule last week, with a sizable Democratic block joining them.
