The change in focus came after an aggressive campaign by wealthy crypto industry executives who have donated lavishly to Trump’s campaign, spent money to host events at Mar-a-Lago, promised to hold fundraisers for his 2024 campaign and lobbied Trump with harsh criticism of Biden and his administration, according to eight people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations and fundraising efforts.
While soliciting big donations from the nation’s wealthiest Republicans, Trump has often promised donors at fundraisers that he will implement the policies they want, from cutting corporate taxes to approving oil drilling permits to deporting pro-Palestinian protesters.
Trump advisers say the former president has had numerous meetings with donors and prospective donors about cryptocurrencies in recent months. Trump’s interest in cryptocurrencies — digital currencies that aren’t tied to a central bank — began when a group of donors came to Mar-a-Lago to say they would support Trump’s campaign and complain about Biden administration officials, including SEC Chairman Gary Gensler.
Trump recently attended another large fundraiser packed with cryptocurrency executives in California, where he pledged to support their “innovation,” according to one attendee.
Trump and his campaign have met multiple times with cryptocurrency entrepreneur David Bailey, who has pledged to host a $15 million fundraiser for Trump in Nashville later this month, according to people familiar with the matter. Trump is also expected to be the headliner at a cryptocurrency conference there, and is sold on the idea of a large audience and celebrity draw.
Bailey met privately with Trump at Trump Tower in New York last spring amid the former president’s criminal trial on business fraud charges, according to people with knowledge of the meeting.
His campaign announced it would accept donations through the cryptocurrency days after the meeting, and crypto executives and supporters also held multiple events at his club in Florida, according to attendees.
Bailey also pitched some cryptocurrency ideas to President Trump’s senior adviser Vince Haley at a dinner last month, where he also pitched a fundraiser in Tennessee, according to people familiar with the matter.
Haley then drafted a platform that included language in support of cryptocurrency, a topic the party had never addressed before and that surprised even veteran members who wondered where the language came from, according to people familiar with the matter. The platform passed overwhelmingly in Milwaukee last week with little scrutiny.
A Trump spokesman declined to answer questions about donors who support Trump’s push and change of policy on cryptocurrencies.
“Cryptocurrency innovators and other companies in the technology sector are under attack from Biden and the Democrats,” Trump campaign spokesman Brian Hughes said. “While Biden will stifle innovation with increased regulation and higher taxes, President Trump is prepared to encourage American leadership in crypto and other emerging technologies.”
Advisers say Trump knew little about cryptocurrencies before donors approached him and has long harbored negative feelings about them, viewing them as fake money.
“I am not a fan of Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. They are not money and their value is highly volatile and unfounded,” he wrote on Twitter in 2019. “Unregulated crypto assets could facilitate illegal activity, including drug trafficking and other illegal activities.”
A senior adviser to the Trump 2020 campaign said they never discussed focusing on cryptocurrencies in the campaign or including them in the party’s official platform because Trump was strongly opposed to them.
“He thought it was strange and didn’t want to get involved,” the official said. “He had no idea what it was and didn’t want to find out.”
“I only talked to him once or twice about it, and he was not a fan,” said a second adviser who spent hundreds of hours with Trump.
Two donors said they spoke privately with Trump when he promised to work with them on the issue, but that he didn’t seem to understand the complexities of cryptocurrency. Trump believes he has crypto advocates who can help him win back the presidency, and that he has potential donors who like and want to use cryptocurrency for his campaign, according to the people who have spoken with him.
“Trump understands that the Biden administration mishandled crypto policy and misjudged its importance,” said Kyle Samani, a Trump donor and crypto executive who attended the California fundraiser. “Many of the people who are interested in crypto are looking for candidates who vote, have money and support specific issues. Trump and his team know all of this and are taking advantage of it.”
Samani, Bailey and other donors said the industry is frustrated with the Biden administration’s regulatory actions. Others in the industry, including those who dislike Trump, said Gensler has been particularly aggressive and should craft reasonable regulations for a largely unregulated industry.
According to the SEC’s website, the agency has filed more than 80 cases against crypto industry actors under the Biden administration, often for allegedly deceiving customers, misrepresenting assets or offering unregistered cryptocurrencies.
“SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy Investors are being urged to remain cautious “If you are considering investing in cryptocurrency securities, please consider carefully,” the agency warns on its website. “Investments in cryptocurrency securities can be highly volatile and speculative, and platforms through which investors buy, sell, borrow or lend these securities may lack important protections for investors.”
A spokesman for Gensler declined to comment on the administration’s regulatory actions. Biden campaign spokesman Amar Moosa also declined to comment. White House officials have met with cryptocurrency executives in recent days to hear a range of complaints.
Tim O’Brien, a longtime Trump biographer, said the president’s fondness for cryptocurrencies isn’t surprising.
“Anyone who walks into Trump’s office and offers an easy way to make money gets his attention. They jump on the competition,” O’Brien said. “He’s always been opportunistic on policy.”
The crypto industry has jumped at the chance to shape President Trump’s thinking, and crypto industry executives have donated heavily to Washington in recent years, according to Open Secrets, a group that tracks campaign finances. The crypto industry has donated roughly $121 million so far this election cycle, according to the group.
Donations to Republicans have outpaced Democrats during this election cycle, according to the group’s analysis, marking the first time that Republicans have had a financial advantage in industry contributions, according to the group’s data.
Earlier this year, in the San Francisco hills, executives from several cryptocurrency companies attended a fundraiser at the home of donor David Sachs, according to an attendee list seen by The Washington Post. Prominent crypto investors Cameron Winklevoss and his twin brother Tyler have both reached their donation limits for the Trump campaign, campaign officials said.
According to attendees, multiple questions about cryptocurrencies were asked at the fundraiser and Trump gave supportive but unsubstantive answers. Trump also voiced his support for cryptocurrencies in his prepared remarks at the start of the event.
“It was probably about 20% of the fundraising effort,” one attendee said.
Donors are excited about the access they have to President Trump’s inner circle.
“We’re really excited about what the Trump campaign has been putting out there publicly and we’re excited to see what they do next,” Bailey said.
Greg Zetaris, an attorney for cryptocurrency firm MultiCoin Capital, said he was pleased to see such supportive language in the party platform. Zetaris said he never expected his company to become so involved in politics.
“That’s pretty strong, good language. It sets out the right general policy objectives, and then we can create appropriate and consistent legislative and regulatory frameworks around that,” Zetaris said. “Cryptocurrency has become more of a politicized issue than we necessarily thought it would be… Republicans see an opportunity here.”
Ashley Parker and Yvonne Winget-Sanchez contributed to this report.
