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A new study reveals that the crypto industry has spent "unprecedented" amounts on influencing this year’s US elections, Tether is launching a new UAE stablecoin, and Australia counts the costs of crypto scams.
Political donations from the US crypto industry account for almost half of all corporate contributions during the 2024 election cycle so far, a new study has found.
Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy group, looked at the numbers as part of an effort to understand how much the crypto industry will influence this year’s elections.
Using data from OpenSecrets, a non-profit that tracks political donations, Public Citizen found that crypto’s total political spending since 2010 now exceeds that of every other industry apart from oil and gas.
In the 2024 cycle, 48 percent of all corporate contributions have come from the crypto industry, which amounts to $119m and counting.
As can be seen from the chart below, corporate contributions from the crypto industry in 2024 are already larger than all corporate contributions combined during the 2020 election cycle.
Source: Public Citizen, OpenSecrets
Among the contributors, Coinbase and Ripple have donated $50.5m and $49m during the 2024 cycle, making up the vast majority of the industry’s corporate spending.
The vast majority of these two companies’ contributions have gone to a single recipient: the Fairshake political action committee (PAC).
Fairshake, which has raised almost $114m in corporate donations from the crypto industry, supports candidates that are likely to pursue crypto-friendly legislation when in office.
In its own words: “Fairshake supports candidates committed to securing the US as the home to innovators building the next generation of the internet.
“Providing blockchain innovators the ability to develop their networks under a clearer regulatory and legal framework is vital if the broader open blockchain economy is to grow to its full potential here in the US.”
Rick Claypool, research director at Public Citizen, said the crypto industry’s contributions to Fairhsake and other super political action committees (PACs) are already bearing fruit.
“Candidates are clamouring to demonstrate their willingness to pander to crypto corporations, and sitting lawmakers are backing off tough policy stances,” he said.
For example, Fairshake recently pledged to spend $25m backing 18 House candidates — nine Democrats and nine Republicans — in the general election.
The super PAC also announced that it will spend $18m on Senate races in Ohio, Michigan and Arizona.
In Ohio, Fairshake is backing Republican Bernie Moreno, who has been described as a “crypto fan” and “blockchain businessman”, while in Arizona and Michigan, the super PAC is backing Democratic Representatives Ruben Gallego and Elissa Slotkin.
In May, both Gallego and Slotkin defied the Biden administration by voting for legislation that transfers jurisdiction over crypto-assets from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Claypool noted that Fairshake’s lack of political affiliation means that its spending can be deployed against either Republicans or Democrats.
“There appears to be an implicit promise that the super PAC will stand down in races where both Democrats and Republicans demonstrate willingness to pander to Big Crypto,” he said.
Josh Vlasto, a Fairshake spokesperson, has said the super PAC will “have the resources to affect races and the makeup of institutions at every level".
“We’ll leverage those assets strategically to maximise their impact in order to build a sustainable, bipartisan crypto and blockchain coalition,” he said.
Vlasto is a former aide to Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and a former chief of staff to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
New Tether stablecoin to launch in UAE
Tether, the world’s largest stablecoin issuer, has announced that it is currently working on a new stablecoin that will be pegged to the UAE dirham (AED).
To build the new stablecoin, Tether will partner with Phoenix Group, a UAE-based crypto conglomerate that is listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX).
It will also be supported by Green Acorn Investments, an Abu Dhabi-based fund that focuses on innovations that support “sustainable wealth and financial literacy”.
Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, said the AED stablecoin will streamline international trade and remittances, reduce transaction fees and provide a hedge against currency fluctuations.
“Tether’s dirham-pegged stablecoin is set to become an essential tool for businesses and individuals looking for a secure and efficient means of transacting in the UAE,” he said.
“The UAE is becoming a significant global economic hub, and we believe our users will find our dirham-pegged token to be a valuable and versatile addition.”
While the new stablecoin is in production, Tether will seek to obtain a licence from the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) under its new Payment Token Services Regulation.
If Tether obtains this authorisation, it will be a first for the stablecoin issuer in a major jurisdiction.
As covered by Vixio, Tether has recently opted to leave the EU rather than attempt to comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation.
Question marks over Tether’s reserves also remain, given that the firm has never been audited and has previously settled with other regulators after being accused of lying about its available capital.
Australia counts the cost of crypto scams
An Australian financial regulator has revealed that it has shut down more than 600 crypto investment scams during the first year of a new crackdown.
In a new report, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said that crypto investments made up almost 10 percent of the 7,300 phishing and other investment scam websites that it identified.
ASIC’s report follows a warning in March this year about fake news articles and deepfake videos of public figures appearing to endorse online investment trading platforms.
Fake trading platforms are the largest component of ASIC’s website takedowns, which average at about 20 each day.
Investment scams are also the leading type of scam affecting Australians, resulting in A$1.3bn ($670m) in losses in 2023.
