Co-founder Chris Larsen donates ‘$10M in XRP’ to Kamala Harris’ campaign

• XRP co-founder’s total donations to Harris’ campaign exceed $11.8 million.
• PAC backing the Democratic candidate raises over $200 million.

As the first “United States crypto election” approaches, digital asset donations are pouring in.

Prominent figures in the cryptocurrency space haven’t shied away from making their political preferences clear, directing substantial contributions to their chosen candidates.

One of the most recent contributions came from Chris Larsen. The co-founder and executive chairman of Ripple [XRP]  has thrown his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.

In an X (formerly Twitter) post dated the 21st of October, the exec shared the motivation behind the donation.

He expressed belief in Harris’ ability to foster a progressive approach to tech innovation, particularly in the crypto sector.

Larsen declared, 

“I’m donating $10M in XRP in support of her.”

This significant donation was directed to Future Forward—a political action committee (PAC) backing Harris in the upcoming U.S. election.

XRP for Harris?

It’s worth noting that Larsen’s support for the Democratic candidate is not new. Records from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show that he contributed XRP tokens valued at $1 million in August. 

Interestingly, Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett highlighted that this was the first documented cryptocurrency donation to Harris’ campaign.

At press time, the exec’s total donation to Harris-supporting PACs amounted to over $11.8 million.

Larsen’s contribution was part of a larger fundraising effort. According to New York Times reporter Theodore Schleifer in the last month Future Forward raised over $100 million.

This included $10 million from the co-founder of Asana and Facebook, Dustin Moskovitz, another $9 million from the nonprofit Evidence for Impact, and $5 million from Illinois Governor Jay Robert Pritzker.

Moreover, as per the latest data from Open Secrets, the PAC has raised over $200 million to bolster Harris’ campaign against Republican candidate Donald Trump.

Crypto in the Trump camp

The news of Larsen’s donations follows Elon Musk’s (CEO of Tesla and SpaceX) recent reference to XRP, as reported by AMBCrypto.

Musk, a vocal Trump supporter, has frequently expressed his opposition toward the VP. In fact, he has become one of the largest donors to Trump’s campaign.

According to filings released by the FEC in early October, the CEO has donated nearly $75 million to his own political action committee, America PAC. 

In addition, another PAC backing Trump’s campaign has raised $7.5 million in cryptocurrency contributions, as noted by AMBCrypto.

Trump’s odds of winning

With the election drawing near, the latest data from Polymarket suggested that the odds favor Trump. The Republican candidate held a 63.7% chance of winning the Oval Office.

In contrast, Harris lagged with a 36.2% probability. As crypto donations continue to surge, it’s clear that digital assets are playing an increasingly prominent role in the 2024 presidential elections.

Source: Polymarket