MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Crypto companies want to make the 2024 election all about them. Nearly half of all corporate spending on this year's federal elections has come from crypto backers. And that money is going to both Democrats and Republicans. Both presidential candidates are courting the crypto vote, although former President Donald Trump is especially popular. Joining me now, NPR financial correspondent Maria Aspan. Hey there, Maria.
MARIA ASPAN, BYLINE: Hey, Mary Louise.
KELLY: Start there - why? Why are crypto companies spending so much on this election cycle?
ASPAN: So they have a lot of money to spend, and they are pretty unhappy with the Biden administration. It's worth remembering, Mary Louise, that cryptocurrency is still a relatively young business. And there's a history of digital currencies like Bitcoin being used for a lot of illegal activities, from money laundering to online scams. So now that many more mainstream businesses and investors are embracing crypto, the government is figuring out how to regulate it. And we've seen the Biden administration crack down with enforcement actions and fines against some crypto companies.
That's not making people - some people in the industry happy. I spoke with Joe McCann, who's an investor who runs a crypto fund called Asymmetric. He argues that the Biden administration's rules are both unclear and overly harsh.
JOE MCCANN: This is real pain that's felt by entrepreneurs and innovators and investors in the space.
ASPAN: And so now we've seen a lot of those entrepreneurs and innovators and investors making campaign contributions to what they call pro-crypto candidates.
KELLY: OK, so explain there why Donald Trump is so popular among the crypto companies.
ASPAN: Well, it's a little bit the zeal of the convert. If you remember, this is how Trump used to talk about crypto.
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DONALD TRUMP: Bitcoin, it just seems like a scam.
ASPAN: So that was Trump on Fox News three years ago. But now that he's running for the presidency, he's promised to turn the United States into the crypto capital of the planet. He's been endorsed by some big Silicon Valley names, and he is also launching a crypto business with his sons called World Liberty Financial. We should note that that raises some conflict of interest questions if Trump wins the election and then is in a position to regulate crypto while he owns a crypto business, but that doesn't bother most of the investors I've spoken with.
KELLY: And you said that some of those investors are not happy with President Biden. Does that extend to his vice president, Kamala Harris?
ASPAN: I would say some investors are feeling better about the Democrats now that Harris has replaced Biden as the Democratic nominee. I chatted about this with Sheila Warren, a Democrat who runs an industry group called the Crypto Council for Innovation. And she argues that either candidate will be an improvement over the current administration.
SHEILA WARREN: Regardless of the outcome of the election, the crypto industry and crypto holders and those using this asset and this technology will be better off than under Biden. The question is, how and to what degree?
ASPAN: And we have seen some big names in crypto fundraising for and endorsing Harris.
KELLY: And what has she actually said about crypto? Is she also promising the U.S. will be the crypto capital of the planet?
ASPAN: (Laughter) She's not going that far. She's been a lot less specific than Trump when it comes to crypto currency. She did release a policy document last week promising to encourage this kind of technology while also protecting consumers and investors. But, you know, as we heard from Sheila Warren there, the crypto industry is just now hoping that whatever happens in November, the next president will be friendlier.
KELLY: Thank you, Maria.
ASPAN: Thank you, Mary Louise.
KELLY: NPR's Maria Aspan. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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