Source: Cointelegraph Original: "{title}"
The authorities in Washington, D.C. are preparing for the potential arrival of thousands of participants for President Trump's inauguration—this includes infrastructure deployment, protest activity plans, and enhanced security for elected officials.
Unlike the many celebrities who avoided Trump's first inauguration in January 2017, the elected president in 2025 is expected to receive full support from executives in the cryptocurrency industry, billionaires, and tech figures, who will contribute not only financially but also by actively participating in his campaign.
Residents of Washington who take the metro may have noticed that the Ripple Labs advertisements hanging on the walls of the Capitol South station are likely to remain until inauguration day. The blockchain company confirmed to Cointelegraph that its CEO Brad Garlinghouse and Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty will attend the ceremony on January 20 as official guests.
During the 2024 U.S. election, Ripple invested $45 million into the political action committee Fairshake to support "pro-crypto" candidates through media purchases and oppose "anti-crypto" individuals. Alderoty personally donated over $300,000 to a fundraising committee supporting Trump.
Records from the Federal Election Commission show that no media directly supported Trump's campaign through Fairshake, but many experts believe that the PAC may have influenced key campaigns that led to Republicans winning a majority in the House and Senate. These victories would give the elected president control over the U.S. government.
After Trump's victory, Garlinghouse and Alderoty dined with him in January, and Ripple also donated $5 million worth of XRP tokens to the presidential inauguration fund.
Ripple executives meet with Donald Trump Source: Brad Garlinghouse
Overall, the total cost for Ripple executives to attend the inauguration may exceed $50 million—this is not an isolated case.
A spokesperson for the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase stated, "We fully support President Trump's transition and inauguration," noting that the organization invested over $45 million into Fairshake in 2024 and donated $1 million to the inauguration fund. As of the time of publication, it is unclear whether CEO Brian Armstrong, who met with Trump last November, will be present, as he plans to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 21.
Donations for Inaugural Privileges?
The U.S. government is issuing a limited number of tickets to the public for the inauguration. Some executives from the crypto industry will witness the event on Capitol Hill through official invitations from Trump or congressional members.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz told Cointelegraph, "Many people from the Bitcoin and crypto space will definitely attend the inauguration; cryptocurrency is one of the core issues in this fierce election battle."
The Texas Blockchain Council (which supported Cruz over his Democratic opponent in August) stated that it has secured viewing seats through the senator's office.
Crypto company Ondo Finance confirmed that its executive team has been invited to attend Trump's swearing-in ceremony, the elected president's dinner, and the vice president JD Vance's dinner, among other events. The company donated $1 million to the inauguration fund last December.
Representatives from fiat-crypto gateway service provider MoonPay also stated they will attend the official event on January 20, reportedly having donated to the inauguration fund.
An online brokerage platform, Robinhood, confirmed that its CEO Vlad Tenev and members of its leadership team will attend Trump's inauguration. The company donated $2 million to the elected president's inauguration fund.
Cointelegraph reached out to stablecoin issuer Circle and cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, both of which donated $1 million to Trump's inauguration, but had not received a response by the time of publication. Kraken co-founder Jesse Powell announced in June 2024 that he personally donated about $1 million in cryptocurrency to Trump's campaign.
Reports suggest that Trump may sign several executive orders on the first day after the inauguration. It remains unclear whether representatives from crypto companies will enter the White House if he decides to issue an executive order regarding the establishment of a national Bitcoin reserve or other policies affecting the industry.
It has been reported that two heads of major tech companies—Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos—will also attend Trump's swearing-in ceremony, along with Tesla CEO and potential government member Elon Musk. TikTok CEO Shou Chew is also expected to attend, despite the app being anticipated to be banned in the U.S. on January 19.
Zuckerberg seems to have been courting the next U.S. president, meeting with him at his Mar-a-Lago home and announcing that Meta will stop fact-checking on platforms like Facebook, Threads, and Instagram. Meta also donated $1 million to the inauguration fund.
Related Articles: SEC and federal prosecutors charge a man involved in a $200 million cryptocurrency trading fraud.
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