CEO of crypto derivatives exchange FTX donated $5M to Biden campaign

The “relative newcomer” to politics joined other major CEO donors to the Democratic candidate.

Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency derivatives exchange FTX, donated $5.2 million to Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.

As the Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 28, Biden’s presidential campaign received a total of $79.5 million from the top 100 donors describing themselves as CEOs. Bankman-Fried is reportedly the second-largest “CEO-contributor” to the campaign after Michael Bloomberg, a co-founder of the eponymous financial and media company, who donated $56 million.

The major contributions by CEOs to both Biden and current president Donald Trump are still only a drop in the bucket. Both campaigns together with their outside backers raised $2.2 billion dollars.

While Bankman-Fried is a “relative newcomer to political spending,” according to the Wall Street Journal, FTX has already dabbled in the arena.

In February 2020, FTX set up a futures contract designed to allow traders to bet on Trump’s reelection in 2020. Dubbed Trump token, the contract expires to $1 if Trump wins the 2020 U.S. presidential general election, and $0 if he loses. According to the latest recorded data, the majority of traders have put their bets on “Trump Lose.”  FTX subsequently launched a similar futures contract for Trump’s rival Biden.

Current prices of TRUMPWIN and TRUMPLOSE tokens on FTX

At publishing time, votes for the American presidential election are still being tallied, with no declared winner so far.