The crypto industry has amassed a war chest exceeding $220 million for the 2026 midterm elections, building on the $139 million it poured into super PACs during the 2024 cycle. The spending spree comes as the Securities and Exchange Commission has rolled back its enforcement posture: dropping cases against Coinbase, Binance, and Robinhood's crypto business, settling with Ripple for $50 million, and scrubbing any mention of crypto from its 2026 examination priorities.
How the playbook was written
Andreessen Horowitz's early bet on an aggressive lobbying operation — one designed to exclude crypto from SEC jurisdiction entirely — became the industry's template. Fairshake, the super PAC backed by Coinbase, Andreessen Horowitz, Ripple, and others, operated across party lines with two affiliated groups: Defend American Jobs for Republicans and Protect Progress for Democrats. About 85% of candidates the Fairshake network backed won their elections. In New York, $5.3 million went exclusively to Democrats and all six of them won.
One in ten members of the incoming Congress had received meaningful backing from crypto ad spending. That kind of reach doesn't come cheap, and the industry is betting it can buy even more influence this cycle.
SEC drops the hammer — on itself
The SEC issued 46 crypto-related enforcement actions in 2023. By early 2025 it had dismissed its civil action against Coinbase, dropped the Binance lawsuit, and closed the Robinhood crypto investigation. Ripple settled for $50 million and got $75 million in escrow returned. The GENIUS Act, which provides a federal framework for stablecoins, became law in July 2025. By November 2025, the SEC had removed all references to crypto from its 2026 examination priorities.
The shift isn't subtle. The agency that spent years calling most tokens securities has effectively stopped bringing new cases.
What the midterms mean for crypto policy
With $220 million in the bank, Fairshake and its affiliates are positioned to run even more races than in 2024. The industry's goal is straightforward: protect the regulatory wins it has already secured and push for legislation that goes beyond stablecoins — maybe market structure bills that would further limit SEC authority. The question is whether the spending will keep delivering 85% win rates, or whether the sheer size of the war chest starts drawing scrutiny from voter groups and other industries.
For now, the crypto lobby has the momentum and the money. The midterms will test whether that combination holds.
