Eric Cantor, a Pro-Crypto Congressman, Is Now a Tether Owner

President Biden's pro-crypto stance, evident in his administration's enthusiasm for digital assets, may extend beyond the commander in chief himself.

According to an August Federal Election Commission disclosure, Biden's campaign committee held a portion of its cash on hand in cryptocurrency. As of Aug. 19, the campaign committee reported having $34,333 in ether (ETH-USD), the world's second-largest cryptocurrency, and $10 in world digital currency (WDC-USD).

The campaign committee's crypto holdings were first reported by Punchbowl News.

Earlier this year, the Biden campaign announced that it would begin accepting cryptocurrency donations in an effort to reach a broader base of donors. The campaign said at the time that it would convert the crypto donations into dollars within 24 hours of receiving them.

Biden's campaign committee also reported having $10,000 in World Liberty Coin (WLFI-USD) along with 75% of any net revenues after World Liberty earns $30 million. The campaign committee also reported having an "undetermined" amount of bitcoin (BTC-USD); it's not clear if he still has those holdings.

The Biden administration has taken a generally positive approach to crypto regulation. In May, the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) issued a guidance letter stating that federal employees must disclose their crypto holdings, and that the ethics pledge not to participate personally and substantially in any government matter that could impact their financial holdings applies to digital assets as well.

Earlier this year, the Treasury Department proposed a rule that would require cryptocurrency brokers to report customer transactions to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The Biden administration has also been discussing the possibility of launching a central bank digital currency.

In addition to Biden's campaign committee, several other political organizations have also reported holding cryptocurrency assets. According to OpenSecrets, the Republican National Committee had about $10,000 in bitcoin as of December 2021.

Meanwhile, Cantor Fitzgerald, a financial services firm led by Republican mega-donor Howard Cantor, reported having an interest in the stablecoin tether (USDT-USD).

Earlier this year, the Journal reported that Cantor's relationship with the stablecoin issuer runs even deeper. According to the Journal, the two companies struck an agreement earlier this year giving Cantor a 5% ownership in Tether.

Cantor Fitzgerald also reported having an interest in litecoin (LTC-USD) as of December 2017, according to a public filing.