Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen joined 87 other business leaders in endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris for president, according to a letter shared with CNBC on Sept. 6.
The maneuver brings Ripple at odds with the majority of the crypto industry, which has been mainly pro-Trump. Larsen’s endorsement of Harris comes even though Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse recently claimed that Gensler will not be SEC chair no matter who wins the election.
The endorsement of the letter to Harris might be short, but it is nonetheless impressive to see the names of such famous people as its signatories. In addition to Larsen, big names such as Box CEO Aaron Levie, Yelp’s Jeremy Stoppelman, and Snap Inc. Chairman Michael Lynton have also joined Harris’s team.
Other unexpected names are also found. James Murdoch, who was once on the board of 21st Century Fox, publicly acknowledges Harris for the first time since she became the Democratic nominee in July. Philanthropist Lynn Forrester de Rothschild and private equity tycoon José Feliciano have also joined Team Harris.
Unexpected supporters for Harris include Ripple connections
The letter’s genesis traces back to a power quartet of Harris supporters. Roger Altman of Evercore, Blair Effron of Centerview Partners, former CEO of American Express Ken Chenault, and former Xerox CEO Ursula Burns were the ones who came up with the idea. Their goal is to flex Harris’ muscle in the business world as she gears up for a nail-biter of a race.
With the first presidential debate on Sept. 10, Harris and Trump are frantically trying to present their economic plans. Harris advocates for a small business boom, suggesting increasing the startup expense tax deduction from $5k to $50k. She’s also planning to increase the capital gains tax to 28% for the million-dollar club, which is a long way from Biden’s 39.6% proposal. But still a rise from the current 20%.
