Ripple backs crypto super PAC with a second donation of $25M

Ripple has donated $25 million to crypto-focused super political action committee (PAC) Fairshake.

The sum follows a $20 million donation Ripple made to Fairshake in December 2023. 

Crypto exchange Coinbase was Fairshake’s largest contributor in 2023, donating a total of $46.5 million under the company’s name, according to Federal Election Commission filings. 

“Our contributions to Fairshake are just one of the many ways Ripple will actively invest in educating voters on the role crypto will play in the future and the dangers of the anti-crypto stance some policymakers are clinging to in Washington,” Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said in a statement Wednesday. 

Read more: Crypto PAC-backed candidates sweep in US election primaries 

Ripple in 2023 also donated $1.5 million to both of Fairshake’s associated super PACs, Protect Progress and Defend American Jobs, FEC filings show. 

Between January 2023 and April 2024, Fairshake spent more than $11 million on federal election campaigns, most notably shelling out $10 million to oppose California Democrat Katie Porter’s bid for a US Senate seat. Porter lost in the March primary to Rep. Adam Schiff, D-CA, who will face Republican Steve Garvey in November. 

Protect Progress spent around $1.7 million between the end of January and the end of February supporting newcomer Shomari Figures, who successfully advanced through the primaries and is running for a US House seat in Alabama’s second district. 

Read more: Coinbase, a16z boost super PAC donations as US Senate races intensify

Fairshake has also supported Congressional crypto advocates, including Reps. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., and Dusty Johnson, R-S.D. 

Ripple’s latest donation announcement comes as the crypto industry continues its attempts to increase its influence in Washington. 

Earlier this month, Coinbase-initiated nonprofit Stand With Crypto launched its own PAC. Stand With Crypto has not yet published contribution or distribution filings with the FEC, but as an associated PAC, only individual Stand With Crypto members can contribute up to $5,000 each. 

“Ripple will not — and the crypto industry should not — keep quiet while unelected regulators actively seek to impede innovation and economic growth that millions of Americans utilize,” Garlinghouse added. “The crypto industry intends to remain heavily invested in this effort until we see meaningful change.”

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