30s Summary

Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen has donated over 1.75 million XRP, equivalent to $1 million, to the 2024 Presidential campaign of Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. The donation, made in August and recorded by the Federal Election Commission, was reportedly the first crypto contribution received by the Harris camp. The Harris campaign began accepting cryptocurrency in September after refute false reports of direct acceptance, with Future Forward PAC raising over $200 million thus far. Despite apparent skepticism from her administration, several crypto industry entities have donated, hoping to influence a friendlier stance towards the sector.

Full Article

Chris Larsen, Ripple co-founder and executive chairman, has given a massive 1,754,815.29 XRP (valued at $1 million when the donation was made) to the Harris-Walz 2024 Presidential campaign, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) records. He made the donation on August 14, 2024, to the pro-Harris Future Forward political action committee (PAC). Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett points out that this is the first ever crypto contribution recorded for the Harris camp.

It should be noted that the PAC began accepting crypto donations for Harris in September, after some false news spread saying the campaign was directly taking crypto funds. Future Forward has already raked in over $200 million in contributions as of October 2024, the FEC reported.

Also in September, Larsen and 87 other top execs openly pledged their support for Harris, saying that a Harris presidency would be good for American businesses.

Meanwhile, the Harris campaign snagged contributions from some influential crypto industry groups and executives who hope their donations would push Harris to take a friendlier stance towards the crypto industry, which her administration apparently views with skepticism.

Following some pressure from the industry, Harris finally issued the campaign’s first statements in late September about crypto policy, saying: “We will partner together to invest in America’s competitiveness, to invest in America’s future. We will encourage innovative technologies like AI and digital assets while protecting our consumers and investors.” It didn’t sound like a major policy shift, though, as it seems to echo a previous statement from the Biden administration.

Source: Cointelegraph