by FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried and members of his team rose from relative obscurity in Washington to become one of the largest donors in American politics, contributing more than $70 million to election campaigns in less than 18 months.
Mr. Bankman-Fried personally gave $40 million to politicians and political action committees, mostly to Democrats and liberal groups, ahead of the 2022 midterm elections, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan group that tracks campaign donations. Ryan Salame, another top FTX executive, donated more than $23 million, mostly to Republicans and conservative groups.
Donations to Federal Political Candidates by FTX Officials
Sam Bankman Fried
(founder)
Sam
Bankman
Fried
(founder)
Donations to Federal Political Candidates by FTX Officials
Sam Bankman Fried
(founder)
Sam
Bankman
Fried
(founder)
Donations to Federal Political Candidates by FTX Officials
Sam Bankman Fried
(founder)
Sam Bankman Fried (founder)
Donations to Federal Political Candidates by FTX Officials
crypto
currency
industry
Sam Bankman
-Fried
(founder)
Sam Bankman Fried (founder)
With FTX’s contributions, crypto became one of the highest-spending sectors in politics during the most recent election cycle, with campaign donations surpassing those from the defense and auto industries combined, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. FTX’s financial collapse occurred the same week as the midterm elections, followed by the resignation of Mr. Bankman Fried.
“I’m not going to pass judgment until we see what the details are,” said Rep. Tom Emmer (R., Minn.), one of dozens of politicians whose campaigns received funding from FTX and its executives, on the company’s conduct leading up to its bankruptcy filing. He said that Mr. Bankman-Fried is “a very likeable young man”.
FTX-related political donations accounted for most of the crypto industry’s spending.
The recipients of FTX’s generosity have included official campaign and fundraising committees affiliated with either political party, as well as PACs. The biggest recipient was Protect Our Future, a group that said it is “an organization designed to help choose candidates who will become champions for pandemic prevention,” but also supported pro-crypto candidates, official data shows. The group received $27 million from Mr. Bankman-Fried and another $1 million from Nishad Singh, an FTX executive.
Federal Political Donations, by FTX official
Nishad Singh, Technical Director
Sam
Bankman
Fried,
founder
Democratic National Party
Democratic candidates $0.2
Ryan Salame,
senior
managerial
Republican candidates $0.2
Republican National Party $0.2
Democratic National Party
Nishad Singh,
Technical Director
Federal Political Donations, by FTX official
Sam Bankman Fried, founder
Democratic National Party
Democratic candidates $0.2
Republican candidates $0.2
Ryan Salame, senior executive
Republican National Party $0.2
Democratic
National Party
Federal Political Donations, by FTX official
Sam Bankman – Fried
founder
Ryan Salame
senior executive
Nishad Singh, Technical Director
Federal Political Donations, by FTX official
Sam Bankman – Fried
founder
Ryan Salame
senior executive
Nishad Singh, Technical Director
Mr. Bankman-Fried personally contributed the individual maximum of $5,800 to Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D., Mich.) and John Boozman (R., Ark.), the chairman and leading member, respectively, of the Senate Agriculture Committee, who co-introduced a bill last summer that gives FTX a path to regulatory compliance in the US would have given. He has also made maximum donations to Sens. , Alaska) and Susan Collins (R., Maine), among others, as well as dozens of House candidates.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Mr. Bankman-Fried was the No. 2 overall top donor to Democrats in the election cycle, trailing only George Soros. Mr. Salame was the number 11 overall donor to Republicans.
FTX officials also contributed to groups associated with national Republican and Democratic organizations, as well as congressional leaders.
Messrs. Bankman-Fried and Singh together gave $3 million to Senate Majority PAC, a group affiliated with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., NY). Mr. Bankman-Fried also donated $6 million to House Majority PAC, a group aligned with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.), and $2 million to GMI PAC, which funded congressional candidates who supported crypto.
Direct contributions from Sam Bankman-Fried
to members of Congress in the 2022 cycle
Direct contributions from Sam Bankman-Fried
to members of Congress in the 2022 cycle
Mr. Salame donated $15 million to the American Dream Federal Action fund, which contributed to Republican candidates. He contributed $2.5 million to the Senate Leadership Fund, associated with Republican leader Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, and $2 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund, associated with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R., California).
A spokesperson for Ms. Gillibrand said she donated the money she received from Mr. Bankman-Fried to a non-profit organization in the Bronx. A spokeswoman for Mr. Manchin said he donated it to a West Virginia food bank. Representatives for Mr. Boozman and Ms. Collins said they intended to donate Mr. Bankman-Fried’s money to charity.
A spokesperson for Ms. Pelosi referred questions to House Majority PAC, which did not respond to a request for comment. Mr Schumer did not respond to a request for comment, and the majority of the Senate (PAC) declined to comment.
Representatives from American Dream Federal Action, the Senate Leadership Fund, the Congressional Leadership Fund, Messrs. McConnell, McCarthy, Emmer and Booker, and Mses. Stabenow and Murkowski did not respond to requests for comment.
—Brody Mullins contributed to this article.
Write to Paul Kiernan at [email protected] and Stephanie Stamm at [email protected]
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