The billionaire Winklevoss twins gave $4.9 million to a super PAC backing crypto-friendly politicians
- The Winklevoss twins gave $4.9 million to Fairshake, a super PAC that aims to influence crypto regulation and policy.
- Fairshake has also received funding from Coinbase and Marc Andreessen.
Winklevoss twins Cameron and Tyler have given $4.9 million to Fairshake, the crypto-focused super political action committee, according to a Bloomberg report citing federal filings.
Fairshake has also raised millions of dollars from Coinbase, Ripple, and Kraken, as well as from venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.
The filings show the super PAC raised $6.3 million in January, including the funds from the billionaire Winklevoss brothers, who cofounded the crypto trading platform Gemini and are prominent bitcoin investors.
The development comes following a December announcement from Fairshake that said they raised $78 million in the fourth quarter of 2023 "to support leaders who support American crypto and blockchain innovation and responsible regulation in the forthcoming 2024 elections."
The group aims to support pro-crypto politicians who are intent on advancing blockchain technology and the digital asset sector.
Last week, the super PAC said it was spending millions to oppose Democratic senate candidate Katie Porter, who has criticized crypto mining's energy usage.
"Despite her claims, Porter has taken campaign cash from the big banks, big pharma, and big oil and her super PAC is spending big to mislead Californians about her record," Fairshake said in a statement, per CoinDesk.
Political financing from crypto-forward groups isn't new. Just over a year ago, a CoinDesk report revealed that the then-crypto giant FTX gave campaign support to more than one in three senators and representatives in US Congress. FTX's founder Sam Bankman-Fried, meanwhile, has since been imprisoned after being found guilty of multiple criminal counts, including those for securities fraud and money laundering.