The Fellowship PAC, a crypto-backed super PAC that initially aligned with Republicans, has made an unexpected shift by exclusively funding Democratic candidates since June. The group, which once boasted a $100 million war chest, has funneled $600,000 through Nxum Group, a firm co-founded by former Trump crypto adviser Bo Hines, to support Democrats like Rep. Ritchie Torres, Rep. Maggie Goodlander, and Sen. Mark Warner. These Democrats are considered crypto allies but have criticized President Trump’s meme coin, $TRUMP.
Nxum Group, which has ties to Tether, a major stablecoin company, has been the primary vendor for Fellowship PAC’s advertising spending. Hines, who previously served as the head of the White House Council of Advisers on Digital Assets, has a complex web of connections to both Tether and Fellowship PAC. Before Trump’s election, Hines promoted a Trump-themed meme coin, and after the election, he helped pass stablecoin regulations benefiting Tether. Despite his past Republican affiliations, Hines now serves as the CEO of Tether’s U.S. branch.
Fellowship PAC received a $10 million donation from Tether’s U.S. banking firm, Cantor Fitzgerald, and appointed Tether’s vice president of regulatory affairs as its chair. However, the PAC’s financial disclosures show its cash on hand has dwindled to $250,000 as of October 14. The Democratic candidates supported by the PAC have distanced themselves from the spending, with Goodlander’s campaign stating she had no involvement in the $150,000 spent on her race. Sen. Warner has publicly criticized Trump’s meme coin, calling it ‘grifting’ and ‘corruption.’