Trump raises more than $4 million in bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies

NASHVILLE — Former President Donald Trump is headed to Tennessee this weekend to deliver a keynote address at a major bitcoin conference. It’s looking like he’ll be in front of a favorable crowd.

Trump, the Republican nominee for president, has raised more than $4 million from a mix of digital tokens, a campaign aide told CNBC. Contributors have donated bitcoin, ether, Ripple’s XRP token, the U.S. dollar pegged stablecoin USDC and various memecoins, according to a Federal Election Commission filing.

The 1,000-plus page report shows totals for the “Trump 47” joint fundraising committee from April 1 to June 30. The committee raised over $118 million during that period, with payouts going to the Trump campaign, the Republican National Committee and other parties, according to the filing.

At least 19 donors contributed more than $2.15 million bitcoin to the committee, the filing shows. Contributors hail from 12 states, including a few battlegrounds. Their professions include homemaker, U.S. military officer, missionary, painter, sales rep for a pizza company and a security technician with the State Department.

Crypto billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss led the charge, each contributing 15.57 bitcoin, or just over $1 million at the time of their donation. Because their contributions surpassed the $844,600 limit, the filing indicates that the money was partially refunded. Mike Belshe, the CEO of digital asset security company BitGo, contributed $50,000 in bitcoin.

In recent months, Trump has positioned himself as the pro-crypto candidate for president, a reversal from his previous stance during his time in the White House. Trump launched his latest non-fungible token collection on the Solana blockchain in April and has since been making increasingly bullish comments on crypto. Along the way, he’s gained the support of a number of influential tech and crypto investors, including venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.

Trump will be in Nashville on Saturday to deliver the keynote address at The Bitcoin Conference, which is being held at Music City Center. He will also host a campaign fundraiser in the city the same day, where tickets run as high as $844,600 per person.

Top-tier tickets include a seat at a roundtable with Trump and are priced at the maximum donation amount permitted for individuals to give to the Trump 47 Committee. The next level down includes a photo with the former president at $60,000 per person or $100,000 per couple,…