David Bailey, entrepreneur and Bitcoin adviser to US President Donald Trump, is seeking to raise $200 million for a political action committee to advance Bitcoin’s interests in the US.
Bailey, a serial entrepreneur and founder of Bitcoin Magazine and BTC Inc., served as an adviser during Trump’s presidential campaign and is credited with being a central figure in the president’s Bitcoin pivot.
“I’ve learned a lot about politics and how the game is played this year. I’m thinking about raising a $100m-$200m PAC, anchored by Nakamoto, to advance Bitcoin priorities,” he said in a post to X on Sunday, referring to Nakamoto Holdings, his Bitcoin treasury company.
US PACs raise funds through donations, and then donate the money to specific political candidates, parties, and causes.
Fairshake is one of the most prominent crypto-related PACS, backed by crypto companies including Coinbase and Ripple Labs. It spent an estimated $130 million during the 2024 US elections to support candidates with a pro-crypto stance and oppose those with an anti-crypto stance.
Sending Bitcoin to the moon a priority
One of the key priorities of the proposed platform is to send the Bitcoin (BTC) price to $10 million, according to Bailey, and to position it “for the long term.”
Bailey also asked users to brainstorm other priorities the proposed PAC should focus on, with Stephan Livera, a Bitcoin podcaster, suggesting a focus on abolishing capital gains tax on Bitcoin sales and protecting the right to self-custody.
Chief strategy officer of the Human Rights Foundation, Alex Gladstein, also had a range of suggestions, including that the PAC should push for legal protections on open-source developers, incentivize Bitcoin education for high schools and allow foreign countries that owe America to pay back debts in Bitcoin.
Bitcoin investor, research analyst and adviser to the Texas Bitcoin Foundation, Tuur Demeester, said the “most important thing for American peace and prosperity as it relates to Bitcoin, would be a return to full reserve banking,” where banks are required to keep 100% of their customers’ deposits in reserve.
Other suggestions from users included promoting Bitcoin non-partisanly, pushing for more funding for more Bitcoin ATMs, and federal funding for Bitcoin education.
Bitcoin CEO says Bailey needs to tread cautiously
Bailey founded Bitcoin holding company Nakamoto Holdings, which raised $300 million to launch in May, along with other ventures such as hedge fund 210k Capital, which Bloomberg said in a July 18 report has invested heavily in publicly traded companies with Bitcoin treasuries.
However, CEO of publicly traded company BTCS, Charles Allen, said that because of these connections, Bailey needs to “tread very cautiously.”
“I’d be careful, your duties are to shareholders, if you anchor political efforts with public company funds, you may find yourself staring down the barrel of a class-action lawsuit for breach of fiduciary duty,” he said.
Bailey said it was “good feedback, but argued that it “wasn’t an issue for Coinbase,” with its backing of Fairshake.
“Shareholders might ask if that approach still makes sense now that we’re in a pro-crypto environment. Was it really a good use of corporate funds? Will really depend on size. Just my two cents, I’d tread carefully,” Allen added.
Cointelegraph reached out to Bailey for further comment.
Generally, creating a PAC involves appointing a treasurer to handle the funds, registering with the US Federal Election Commission and filing financial reports with the agency.
Related: Industry calls for urgent crypto law reforms after Australian election
Crypto companies pushing into political space
Crypto companies spent more than $134 million on the 2024 US elections. The election ended with a flood of elected officials who had pro-crypto views.
In one of the more recent instances, James Walkinshaw, a Democratic candidate seeking to replace the late Representative Gerry Connolly, won a party primary after a crypto-backed PAC spent more than $1 million to support his race.
At the same time, Fairshake has reported holding $141 million in assets earmarked for use in upcoming elections.
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