Crypto donations for 2024 U.S. election hit $190m

Cryptocurrency donations for the 2024 U.S. election have accelerated as the November vote draws closer.

Fox journalist Eleanor Terret shared details on Sept. 13 of an analysis that showed campaign teams across the political divide have attracted $190 million in crypto donations so far.

Having received millions of dollars from crypto billionaires and the broader industry, the 2024 U.S. election cycle is well above the last cycle. Indeed, it dwarfs the combined donations from the crypto industry during the 2020 and 2022 cycles.

0nly $15 million in 2020

In 2020, crypto donations reached roughly $15 million, while the midterm elections in 2022 netted $98 million.

Notably, the $15 million in 2020 reportedly included a staggering $5.2 million donation from jailed former FTX chief executive officer Sam Bankman-Fried to the outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden’s campaign.

As crypto.news reported at the time, SBF was later accused of making more than 300 illegal political donations, with indictments coming after FTX’s collapse.  

Crypto super PACs

In 2024, major political donations from the crypto space have included contributions from Coinbase, Ripple, and Gemini executives. Most crypto donations have flowed into non-partisan groups and political action committees, according to a recent report by Public Citizen.

These PACs, such as Fairshake, eye the election of crypto-friendly legislators amid the quest for more presence for the crypto voice in Congress.

However, former President Donald Trump has received a fair share of these donations. Meanwhile, a super PAC supporting Kamala Harris has also started accepting such contributions.