Top Democratic donors are said to be pushing for Kamala Harris to speak at a U.S. crypto conference as her Republican rival shows support for the crypto industry.
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is reportedly being encouraged to attend a crypto conference in the U.S. this fall. This push follows former President Donald Trump’s pro-crypto remarks at the Bitcoin 2024 event in Nashville, Texas.
According to a Decrypt report, major Democratic donors are urging crypto media firm Blockworks to have Kamala Harris speak at its upcoming crypto conference, Permissionless III. The event is set to take place from Oct. 9-11 in Salt Lake City. Blockworks founder Jason Yanowitz revealed that some of the largest Democratic donors are advocating for Harris’ appearance, though their identities remain undisclosed.
Permissionless III aims to feature notable figures like a16z crypto founder Chris Dixon, Galaxy Digital CEO Michael Novogratz, and Republican Congressman Tom Emmer. Yanowitz mentioned that Blockworks wants to create a more bipartisan atmosphere at this year’s conference, differing from the “Republican-heavy” tone of Bitcoin 2024.
In mid-July, a16z founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz endorsed Donald Trump and announced plans to donate to PACs supporting him. On the other hand, Democratic megadonor Novogratz supports Kamala Harris, suggesting her nomination could make the race against Trump more competitive.
Harris’ stance on cryptocurrency remains unclear, but has been a topic of interest since President Biden announced his withdrawal from the election race this fall. In a July 24 post on X, Bitcoin Magazine CEO David Bailey claimed that a major Democratic donor said Harris privately called Bitcoin "money for criminals."
Recently, reports indicated that Harris’ campaign team contacted top U.S. crypto companies like Coinbase, Circle, and Ripple Labs to "reset relations" with the industry.
