Ripple went all-in on politics and gained billions

Ripple went all-in on politics this year — and it paid off spectacularly. The oldest, most experienced, and wealthiest altcoin-focused company, Ripple’s multi-year initial coin offering (ICO) started in February 2013 and ultimately raised $1.3 billion — a breathtaking sum during crypto’s early years.

Three of the project’s co-founders, Chris Larsen, Brad Garlinghouse, and Jed McCaleb, are now billionaires and the market cap of its flagship XRP token is up $88 billion year-to-date.

Working in the industry for over a decade, its leaders have learned what types of activities do and do not make an impact. As one of the world’s first ICOs, they created the playbook for millions of subsequent token offerings and continue to find ways to engage their community of holders.

In 2024, the correct choice was prioritizing politics.

XRP’s market cap is up $88 billion year-to-date.

Millions in politics donations for billions in crypto gains

In the five weeks since the US election, XRP has quadrupled from $0.50 to over $2. On a national TV broadcast, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse celebrated his political efforts that culminated in victories on November 5.

Reporters at 60 Minutes interviewed Garlinghouse where he highlighted the digital asset industry’s influence on US policy-makers. During the 2024 election, 60 Minutes revealed, crypto companies donated one-third of all direct corporate contributions to super PACs.

Those crypto donations worked. An overwhelming 85% of the 33 lawmakers who received donations from crypto super PACs won their election to Congress.

Ripple executives were marquee donors. Garlinghouse donated $44 million to political candidates with friendly stances toward digital assets, including $25 million to Fairshake, a crypto super PAC. Fairshake said it would use the money to onboard more attorneys to offer pro bono services and promote financial and crypto literacy.

Ripple co-founder Larsen donated $5 million to Greenpeace’s virtue-signaling push for Bitcoin to switch its algorithm from proof-of-work to a new, more eco-friendly algorithm. Even though Larsen knew the network would never initiate such a change, his philanthropic support for the environment signaled support to democratic policymakers.

Read more: Ripple exec Chris Larsen donates $250K to up police surveillance in San Francisco

Ripple won’t be leaving politics

Of course, Ripple’s involvement in politics started as early as 2019 when it joined the Blockchain Association, a lobbyist for crypto-friendly regulation. That membership predates the SEC’s unregistered securities lawsuit but could indicate that Ripple’s co-founders were already anticipating attention from regulators.

Garlinghouse and Larsen also routinely associate with Washington DC insiders and regulators. For example, they recently appeared at a fintech conference hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.

In summary, Ripple has learned that being politically active is a savvy technique for long-term success in crypto. And token holders have reaped the rewards.

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