After The co-founder of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), was found to be in a compromising position for his donation of $5.2million to Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign, Democratic organizations have now set aside a fraction of the total $40 million given by SBF for the US mid-term elections.
Democrats To Return Only 2.2% of Sam Bankman-Fried’s Total Donations to FTX Exchange
Prior to his arrest, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was known for making generous contributions to the Democratic Party. However, it is estimated that approximately one third of the population is living in poverty. By SBF and his inner circle providing direct contributions, they have been able to make huge amounts of money. Since 2020, SBF has donated significant amounts to Democrats and he has also admitted to making undisclosed donations to Republican candidates. In SBF was the second-largest financial donor to Joe Biden’s campaign for the 2020 election and provided $5.2 Million to the incumbent President.
At an international press conference on December 13th, 2022, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked by reporters if the administration would return any funds. However, Jean-Pierre declined to make a comment, citing the Hatch Act. “Anything that is related to political contributions, I would have to refer it to the DNC from here,” Jean-Pierre stated. SBF was the second-largest donor to Democrats, even exceeding George Soros. It provided crucial funding to Joe Biden’s campaign and donations to the US mid-term elections.
According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) data, opensecrets.org information and other media reports, SBF has given Democrats a minimum of $40 million in donations. Even Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said that SBF may have given an even larger amount, possibly as much as $1 billion. Now, the bankrupt state wants $45.2 million to be returned. Democratic candidates, political action committees and Biden have agreed to return the funds to the company, so that it can actually repay creditors. Three main Democratic organizations will return $1 million, which is approximately 2.2% of SBF’s total $45.2 million contribution.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee will return $353,000 each. The DNC also plans to return $815,000 for the bankrupt FTX property. “Given the allegations of potential campaign finance violations by Bankman-Fried, we are setting aside funds to return the $815,000 in contributions since 2020,” A spokesperson for DNC said. “We will return the funds as soon as we receive proper direction in the legal proceedings.”
Returning $1 million, 2.2% of bankrupt property funds, still leaves $44.2 million that the SBF gave away to PACs or party candidates. It is worth noting that Democratic organizations haven’t provided the full amount, but some American authorities have taken upon themselves to donate the money to charity. There is concern that the funds may have been obtained through fraudulent means. This could very well be seen to reward and legitimize such behaviour.
Furthermore, returning 2.2% of the funds may be seen more as a political calculation than an ethical one. It is not clear if FTX creditors will be content with 2.2% of the funds, or if they’ll seek a larger share of political donations made by Bankman-Fried.
