Winklevoss Twins Say They Each Gave $1 Million to Trump Presidential Campaign

As an experienced financial analyst, I have closely followed the developments in the crypto industry and its intersection with politics. The recent announcement by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, the co-founders of Gemini, that they donated $1 million each to former President Donald Trump’s campaign, is a significant development in this area.

The CEO of Gemini, Tyler Winklevoss, along with his twin brother and company president, Cameron Winklevoss, have collectively donated $2 million to presidential campaigns – making one of the earliest significant contributions from notable crypto industry executives. They have shown their support for former President Donald Trump by each contributing $1 million, as Tyler disclosed in a detailed post on X.

As a crypto investor over the past few years, I’ve noticed the Biden Administration’s hostility towards cryptocurrencies. They haven’t hidden their intentions, declaring an open war against us. Multiple government agencies have been used as weapons against the good actors in our industry. Their goal? To bully, harass, and even sue us relentlessly with the intention of destroying the crypto market.

Last year, I analyzed a case where the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Gemini exchange of selling unregistered securities. At that moment, Tyler Winklevoss described this situation as a “manufactured parking ticket” to the media. However, in explaining his support for Trump during the elections, he primarily emphasized his opposition towards Biden.

“President Donald J. Trump is the pro-Bitcoin, pro-crypto, and pro-business choice,” he concluded.

Tyler Winklevoss announced that he donated 15.47 bitcoins to the Trump campaign, following Trump’s new acceptance of cryptocurrency contributions. His brother also made a similar donation. The funds are directed to the Trump 47 Committee Inc., which is a joint fundraising committee. This type of committee allows the contribution to be divided among various Republican recipients in order to adhere to legal limits for campaign contributions.

The brothers have consistently contributed equal amounts to U.S. presidential campaigns, making them significant individual donors in the 2024 elections with a collective giving of approximately $5.4 million as of before today, according to Federal Election Commission records. Prior to this day, they had donated around $2.7 million each to various candidates. On the Republican side, they supported several notable figures who attempted to challenge Trump for the nomination: Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, Senator Tim Scott, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

As a researcher, I’ve come across some notable contributions to the Trump campaign that merit mentioning. The Winklevoss twins, known for their early involvement with Facebook, have donated the maximum amount allowable. Similar maxed-out contributions have been made by Jeffrey Sprecher and his wife Kelly Lynn Loeffler. Sprecher is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Intercontinental Exchange, while Loeffler was a former U.S. senator and current CEO of Bakkt. Additionally, Joe Ricketts, who founded and previously led TD Ameritrade, and Robert Bigelow, owner of Budget Suites of America and founder of the now-defunct Bigelow Aerospace, have also donated the maximum amount to Trump’s campaign.

Nikhilesh De contributed reporting.