In July, President Donald Trump made heads turn when the White House revealed a $200 million ballroom project. By Oct. 22, the project's cost had surged by another $100 million, bringing the total price tag to $300 million. The President revealed images of the lavish planned project during a press conference.
According to the White House, the project will be funded entirely by Trump and private donors, including some of the biggest players in technology and cryptocurrency.
Among the crypto-linked contributors are Gemini co-founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, Paxos co-founder Charles Cascarilla, Ripple Labs , Coinbase, and Tether America.
They join an elite roster of corporate benefactors such as Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, and Google, along with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's family and several high-profile billionaires.
The White House has not disclosed how much each donor pledged or how much Trump himself plans to contribute.
Previous donations from the crypto world
This isn't Trump's first brush with major crypto money.
The Winklevoss twins, who were early Bitcoin (BTC) investors, have been outspoken advocates for regulatory reform. In 2024, they each donated $1 million in Bitcoin to Trump's presidential campaign.
The most significant donation from the world of crypto was Trump's January 2025 inauguration week . It shattered fundraising records, pulling in $239 million from corporate donors and executives. What's more important is that a staggering $18 million came from crypto firms and founders. Ripple Labs topped the list with nearly $4.9 million, making it the second-largest single contribution overall.
Other notable crypto backers in the inauguration week included Robinhood, which donated $2 million, and major exchanges like Coinbase, Kraken, and Crypto.com. Stablecoin issuer Circle and venture firm Paradigm each chipped in $1 million.
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Trump once called Bitcoin a 'scam'
Trump wasn't always a big fan of crypto. In fact, he was quite hesitant about the world of decentralized finance. He even called Bitcoin a "scam" during an interview with Fox Business in 2021.
Toward the end of his first term, however, he began showing slight interest in digital assets. After leaving office, he dipped a toe into blockchain with the launch of his "Trump Digital Trading Cards" NFT collection in late 2022, his first real venture into the space.
Fast forward to his second term, and Trump has taken some of the most overtly pro-crypto steps ever seen from a U.S. president, marking a sharp turnaround from his early skepticism.
Related: Trump signs GENIUS Act into law
Pro-crypto moves in second term
One of the most important crypto bills that was passed in Trump's second term was the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act of 2025, or the GENIUS Act" on June 17. Passed by the U.S. Senate on June 17, 2025, with a 68–30 vote, the legislation establishes a federal regulatory framework for stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies pegged to assets such as the U.S. dollar.
The law mandates that stablecoin issuers maintain full 1-to-1 reserves backed by highly liquid, low-risk assets like U.S. dollars or Treasury bills, aiming to strengthen transparency and consumer protection in the digital asset market.
Another significant Act that everyone in July was the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025. The Act aims to clarify the regulatory boundaries between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding oversight of digital assets and related intermediaries. At its core is the aim to legally define what constitutes a "digital commodity" versus a "security" within the cryptocurrency market.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong was present in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 23 to meet both Democratic and Republican senators to discuss the Act.
More recently, the President also pardoned Binance founder Changpeng "CZ" Zhao following months of private outreach between Zhao and Trump's inner circle, including efforts by the Binance founder to support the Trump family's own crypto venture.
The full list of donors, as provided by the White House:
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Altria Group Inc.
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Amazon
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Apple
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Booz Allen Hamilton Inc.
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Caterpillar Inc.
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Coinbase
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Comcast Corporation
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J. Pepe and Emilia Fanjul
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Hard Rock International
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Google
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HP Inc.
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Lockheed Martin
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Meta Platforms
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Micron Technology
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Microsoft
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NextEra Energy Inc.
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Palantir Technologies Inc.
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Ripple
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Reynolds American
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T-Mobile
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Tether America
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Union Pacific Railroad
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Adelson Family Foundation
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Stefan E. Brodie
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Betty Wold Johnson Foundation
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Charles and Marissa Cascarilla
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Edward and Shari Glazer
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Harold Hamm
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Benjamin Leon Jr.
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The Lutnick Family
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The Laura & Isaac Perlmutter Foundation
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Stephen A. Schwarzmann
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Konstantin Sokolov
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Kelly Loeffler and Jeff Sprecher
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Paolo Tiramani
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Cameron Winklevoss
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Tyler Winklevoss
This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Oct 24, 2025, where it first appeared in the Business News section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
