Coinbase pushed back sharply against U.S. Senator Chris Murphy’s accusation that the crypto exchange benefited from political favoritism under former President Donald Trump, calling the claims “ridiculous.”
Murphy, a Democratic senator from Connecticut, alleged in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that Coinbase’s corporate and political donations influenced the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) decision to drop its lawsuit against the company earlier this year. He also claimed that Coinbase’s $46 million in election-related spending, its contributions to Trump’s inauguration, and a recent donation toward building a new White House ballroom were all linked to what he called “Trump’s corruption factory.”
Here's an example of how Trump's corruption factory works.
— Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) October 30, 2025
1. Coinbase put $46M into elections to help Trump allies.
2. Sends him a huge check for his inauguration.
3. Trump drops SEC lawsuit against Coinbase.
4. Trump demands big donation from Coinbase for ballroom. Done. https://t.co/kLstTHquty
The senator’s comments come as Democrats intensify scrutiny of the Trump administration’s $300 million ballroom project, with lawmakers demanding transparency on how the initiative is being financed, according to The Washington Post.
In a firm response, Coinbase’s Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad rejected Murphy’s accusations. He said that Fairshake—the leading political action committee (PAC) representing the crypto industry—is strictly nonpartisan and has supported candidates from both parties, including several of Murphy’s own Senate colleagues.
“Corporate inaugural donations have been standard across administrations, from Obama to Biden to Trump,” Shirzad wrote, defending Coinbase’s past contributions.
Senator @chrismurphyCT. This is ridiculous. Here are the facts:
— Faryar Shirzad 🛡️ (@faryarshirzad) October 30, 2025
- Fairshake is non-partisan superpac. Ask your staff to look up the public disclosures and you'll see that FS supported multiple Democrats, including 3 of your new Senate D colleagues.
- Presidential Inaugural… https://t.co/0PGEz3zQtJ
He clarified that the company’s recent donation toward the White House ballroom was made through the Trust for the National Mall, alongside corporations from multiple sectors, and was not tied to any political agenda.
Addressing the SEC lawsuit, Shirzad argued that the case under the previous SEC leadership reflected “a grotesque pattern of bullying and abuse of power,” while commending the current SEC’s decision to dismiss it as “the right decision on the merits.”
“It may be that you just don’t like our industry,” Shirzad added. “That’s unfortunate given that we’re working hard to ensure the U.S. financial system stays at the forefront of innovation.”
He also pointed to the surge of nearly 100 new stablecoin initiatives launched since the passage of the GENIUS Act—legislation Coinbase publicly supported—as evidence of the industry’s growing role in modern finance.
Murphy has recently clashed with another major crypto exchange, Binance.US, over similar concerns. Earlier this week, he alleged that Binance.US listed the USD1 stablecoin as a political favor following Trump’s pardon of Binance founder Changpeng Zhao. The exchange denied the claim, saying the listing was approved beforehand as part of routine business operations.
As political tensions over cryptocurrency’s influence deepen, Coinbase’s rebuttal underscores the industry’s ongoing effort to position itself as bipartisan and innovation-driven—despite growing skepticism from some lawmakers.
