Protect Our Future PAC

Protect Our Future PAC is a cautionary tale about how stolen money can buy political influence. The PAC was almost entirely funded by Sam Bankman-Fried, the FTX cryptocurrency exchange founder who was subsequently convicted of fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering for stealing billions from FTX customers. The $27 million Bankman-Fried directed to Protect Our Future in the 2022 midterms came from customer funds that were illegally misappropriated — meaning the PAC's political influence was purchased with stolen money. The PAC spent its $27 million supporting Democratic candidates in 2022 House primaries, focusing on candidates aligned with pandemic preparedness and effective altruism — the philosophical movement that Bankman-Fried used as moral cover for his financial empire. The candidates who received Protect Our Future support were presented as champions of evidence-based policy and long-term thinking, but the money funding their campaigns was the product of one of the largest financial frauds in American history. Bankman-Fried's political strategy extended beyond this PAC — he also donated millions to Democratic and Republican candidates directly, funded other PACs, and cultivated relationships with congressional leaders and White House officials. His access was remarkable: Bankman-Fried met with SEC officials, testified to Congress, and shaped crypto regulation discussions, all while running what prosecutors described as a fraud from the beginning. The speed with which political doors opened for a 30-year-old with $27 million to spend illustrates how money transcends credentials in Washington. All donations from Bankman-Fried are now subject to clawback by FTX bankruptcy trustees, who are working to recover funds for defrauded customers. This means that candidates and PACs that received Bankman-Fried money may be forced to return it — creating the bizarre situation where political influence was purchased, exercised, and then retroactively revoked. The PAC is effectively defunct, with zero activity in 2024, but its legacy endures as proof that the American political system has no meaningful safeguard against stolen money being used to buy political influence.