Trump Raised Millions From Crypto Firms for His Inauguration

(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee received millions of dollars in donations from firms in the cryptocurrency industry that’s already seeing special attention from his administration, new disclosures show.

Coinbase Inc., Crypto.com, Galaxy Digital, Paradigm Operations and Payward Inc., better known as Kraken, each gave $1 million. Robinhood Markets Inc., which offers a trading platform for digital currencies, contributed $2 million, according to the reports filed with the Senate Office of Public Records.

Once a crypto skeptic, Trump enthusiastically embraced the industry as an investor, entrepreneur and source of political fundraising. Among the large donors to his campaign and super political action committee were venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, and billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.

Crypto is just one of the many industries that lavished Trump with cash for his inaugural festivities. Many corporations who declined to give in 2016 — such as Amazon.com Inc., Meta Platforms Inc., Uber Technologies Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. — collectively spent millions in 2024. 

Trump received $27.5 million for his inaugural committee from 39 different companies between the November election and the end of the year, much more than he raised over roughly the same period in 2016. That includes hefty donations from Comcast Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp. and Verizon Communications Inc. All gave $1 million, bigger amounts than they gave eight years ago. Other new donors to Trump’s inauguration include health-care companies Bayer Corp. and Johnson & Johnson. 

Corporations have publicly embraced Trump following his 2024 White House win, a stark reversal from his 2016 victory when executives largely kept him at arm’s length to avoid controversy with employees and customers. In recent months, executives have sought to curry favor with the new president, visiting him at his Mar-a-Lago resort, announcing new business investments tied to his policy priorities and attending his inaugural ceremony.

Crypto’s investment in Trump’s campaign and inauguration has already yielded results for the industry. The president tapped David Sacks, the venture capitalist he named as his crypto czar, to head a task force that includes top Cabinet officials to promote US digital financial technology. The task force will consider regulatory reform and creating a digital asset stockpile. 

Earlier: How Trump Came Around to Crypto — and What Crypto Wants in Return

Trump, who’s expected to easily surpass the $107 million he raised for his 2017 inauguration, received donations from other industries expecting favorable policies from his administration. Chevron Corp. gave $2 million, a much heftier gift than the $525,000 it contributed for his first inauguration. Oklo Inc., which makes fission reactors that can run on nuclear waste, gave $250,000. Chris Wright, Trump’s pick to run the Energy department, sat on its board.

Companies in the renewable energy business also donated. Hanwha Q Cells America Inc., the US subsidiary of the German solar panel maker, gave $500,000, as did GE Vernova, a General Electric spinoff that manufactures everything from gas turbines to blades for wind power. The American Clean Power Association, a trade group that represents wind, solar, clean hydrogen and transmission companies, gave $100,000. 

Among the flurry of executive orders he issued to start his term, Trump froze permits to new offshore wind power installations, a major setback for the industry, and invoked emergency powers in a bid to bolster domestic energy production. 

The disclosures offer a partial glimpse into some of the moneyed interests who paid hefty sums to help welcome Trump back to Washington. Organizations with in-house lobbyists are required to semiannually disclose their political contributions. 

Trump’s inaugural committee isn’t due to release its complete list of donors to the Federal Election Commission until April 19.

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