Crypto Giants Rally Behind Trump, Pledge Millions to Inaugural Festivities

The last week has somewhat cooled the post-election euphoria of the crypto market – but some companies didn’t get the memo. 

The president-elect, Donald Trump’s commitment to evolving the blockchain industry has seen industry heavyweights throw their support behind him. 

Several major exchanges and DeFi projects announced they will donate significant sums of money to Trump’s inauguration. The inauguration, set to kick off on January 20th, will be bookended by several celebratory events. 

But what do donators get from giving up their hard-earned cash?

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Crypto Giants Rally Behind Trump with Major Donations, Seeking Regulatory Clarity

Obviously, if you’re a crypto company in a fast-changing landscape, having the person in charge of legislation in your corner is nothing but a good thing.

For example, Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse has already had a one-on-one meeting with Trump, which resulted in the old-school coin going haywire.

Similarly, Coinbase’s CEO Brian Armstrong managed to secure a similar interaction with the incumbent president of the United States.

The common theme? Both have made sizable donations to Trump.

Early December saw Garlinghouse announce a US $5m (AU $8m) donation made in XRP to inauguration festivities. 

And before November officially revealed Trump as the winner, Armstrong and Coinbase donated US $1m (AU $1.6m) for the inauguration.

The crypto exchange’s Vice President for US Policy, Kara Calvert, explained the move:

Coinbase is committed to working with the administration and both sides of Congress to create regulatory clarity for crypto, and it’s important to engage early in order to hit the ground running.

Kara Calvert, Vice President for US Policy at Coinbase

Now, global trading platform Kraken and tokenised DeFi project Ondo Finance have joined the fray, each donating US $1m (AU $1.6m) too.

Exclusive Perks Await Donors at Trump’s Inauguration

The donations come with their own little perks, too.

Trump’s inauguration is set to be an expensive time, with several high-profile events and celebratory dinners locked in.

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Donators will receive an invite to a Sunday service alongside an inaugural ball – and they can even rub shoulders with Trump’s cabinet.

It’s going to be an opulent start to Trump’s second reign as president, one that the crypto industry hopes will bring sweeping reform to the maturing Web3 world.