30s Summary

The 2024 US presidential race has stirred interest in the crypto community, with top figures pledging their support for either former President Donald Trump or VP Kamala Harris. Trump has gained significant backing from big names in the crypto industry while Harris, despite entering the race later, has also scored notable endorsements. Some crypto execs have chosen neutrality, believing the industry’s growth is inevitable regardless of leadership. With the election approaching, the crypto sector is debating which candidate would be better for the industry.

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The upcoming 2024 US presidential race has got the crypto world buzzing, with leading figures in the industry showing their support for the two main candidates.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican hopeful, has found a lot of fans in the crypto community, just as Democratic VP Kamala Harris has secured some big-name endorsements from the same crowd.

As the election nears on November 5, we’ve been checking out who in the crypto world has publicly backed either candidate.

Looking good for Trump with crypto buddies

Trump, who’s had a change of heart on Bitcoin over the past few years, has won a fair amount of support from crypto bigwigs compared to Harris. She joined the race a bit late, securing the Democratic nomination in July, whereas Trump had announced his candidacy almost two years before the election, in November 2022.

Jeremy Kauffman, founder of file-sharing network LBRY, was one of the first to endorse Trump in May 2024.

Harris began getting endorsements from the crypto community a bit later. Uphold’s former CEO, JP Thieriot, voiced his support for her in August 2024, as did John O’Farrell, a partner at the crypto-friendly venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z).

Big crypto names rooting for Trump

Also in Trump’s corner, you find key figures from top exchanges such as Kraken and Gemini.

In June, Gemini founders, the Winklevoss twins, donated $2 million in Bitcoin to Trump’s re-election campaign because of his “pro-crypto” stance.

Kraken’s co-founder, Jesse Powell, also announced a $1 million donation to Trump, calling him the “only pro-crypto major party candidate.”

ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood, a big Bitcoin bull, also publically backed Trump in June. Elon Musk, whose company Tesla put over $700 million into Bitcoin, has also shown his support for Trump at several of his rallies.

Among other notable Trump supporters, you’ll find Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, BitGo CEO Mike Belshe, Tron founder Justin Sun, Bitcoin Foundation founder Charlie Shrem, author and entrepreneur Robert Kiyosaki, and Messari co-founder Ryan Selkis.

Other bigwigs backing Trump include former PayPal president David Marcus, Douglas Leone of Sequoia Capital, and Marc Andreessen, a co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz.

Harris clinches crypto endorsements, despite starting late

Even though she was a later entrant, Harris has won endorsements from several key crypto executives.

In September, she finally shared her thoughts on crypto policies, showing her support while emphasizing consumer protections.

Biggies in the crypto world including Ripple CEO Chris Larsen and Blockchain Foundation’s executive director Cleve Mesidor have shown their support for Harris.

Venture capitalist Mark Cuban, an active crypto investor, has also backed Harris, arguing that Trump’s second term would be worse than his first. John O’Farrell of a16z has also pledged his support, along with SkyBridge Capital’s Anthony Scaramucci.

Staying neutral in the crypto sphere?

Some crypto execs have chosen to stay neutral, insisting that the industry’s growth is set, regardless of who bags the presidency.

Well-known investor Tim Draper has donated to the campaigns of both Harris and Trump, believing that both have “their hearts in the right place”.

No matter who ends up in the White House, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong believes that the next US administration will have a positive impact on crypto. Quantum Economics founder Mati Greenspan echoes this sentiment, stating that having a president with experience in launching an ICO will benefit the industry.

So, there you have it – with the 2024 US elections just around the corner, the crypto world is all abuzz about which candidate will be better for business.

Source: Cointelegraph