The Block: Crypto leaders launch PAC to back congressional candidates

A cadre of crypto industry leaders announced Friday the formation of a new political action committee (PAC), the latest sign that crypto riches made in recent years are bleeding into the American political system and executives want to influence election outcomes.

Dubbed GMI PAC, the new committee will back congressional candidates in the 2022 midterm elections "who work to give consumers and innovators the opportunity to build and use next-generation technologies services here in America."

The PAC's founding donors and board of directors include CMS Holdings co-founder Dan Matuszewski, Framework Ventures co-founder Vance Spencer, and FTX Digital Markets CEO Ryan Salame.

Multicoin Capital, Messari, and Blockchain Capital are also backing the PAC. Anthony Scaramucci's Skybridge Capital is another backer.

The PAC plans to spend more than $20 million in the 2022 cycle and is currently evaluating candidates in Texas ahead of the March 1st primary.

"This is long overdue," said Matuszewski.

The crypto market has seen its participants increasingly flex their muscles in the face of mounting skepticism among the upper echelons of the Washington political class.

As recently reported by The Block, data from the Federal Election Commission shows that Coinbase spent $1 million in total lobbying expenses in the fourth quarter of 2021. Last year, several cryptocurrency executives, including FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried and Coinbase's Alesia Haas, descended upon Washington DC to make a case for digital asset technology to the House Financial Services Committee.

While the cryptocurrency industry has been a source of job creation in the US, some leaders are skeptical about the risks such assets pose to the broader financial system.

President Joe Biden's White House is reportedly preparing to release a "government-wide strategy" for cryptocurrencies. That directive should be presented to the President in the coming weeks.