Affiliates of the Fairshake political action committee (PAC), largely funded by Coinbase and Ripple Labs, have increased their initially announced expenditures by more than 50% in what could be a key race for control of Congress in 2026.According to Thursday filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the Fairshake affiliate Defend American Jobs — a group that supports Republican candidates in primaries and elections — spent $46.6 million on media opposing former lawmaker Sherrod Brown and supporting Republican incumbent Jon Husted in Ohio’s Senate race for the 2026 midterms. The spending marked a sharp increase over what Fairshake said in September it initially planned to spend opposing Brown’s return to the Senate: $30 million.“I’ve spent my career taking on Wall Street, taking on big pharma, taking on big oil and been successful in many cases,” said Brown in an interview aired Friday on Pod Save America, addressing the attack ads funded by the crypto industry, adding:“Jon Husted is their boy […] They know he’s their guy, they know I’m going to hold him accountable and I guess it’s a perfect storm, so they spend literally tens and tens of millions of dollars.”With just under three weeks until the US election, early voting has already been underway for 10 days in Ohio. Notably, Fairshake’s affiliate was not the only crypto-aligned PAC to ramp up spending as Ohio voters cast their ballots. The Digital Freedom Fund, a Super PAC created by Gemini co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, reported about $3 million in ad spending this week to oppose Brown and support Husted, bringing the group’s total media purchases in the Ohio race to more than $5.9 million.Fairshake’s expenditures have already exceeded its efforts in 2024, when the PAC spent $41 million supporting Republican Bernie Moreno and opposing Brown, who was running for reelection to the Senate at the time. The Democratic lawmaker chaired the Senate Banking Committee and was one of the more outspoken voices challenging laws and policies favored by the crypto industry while serving in Congress.Related: Vivek Ramaswamy’s gubernatorial run lacks the crypto rhetoric of his presidential bidThe Ohio race isn’t Fairshake’s only focus with the midterm elections looming. Defend American Jobs reported spending more than $6.7 million to oppose Independent candidate Dan Osborn in Nebraska’s Senate race. Osborn is running against Republican Pete Ricketts, who voted in favor of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act and the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act while in office.Cointelegraph reached out to Fairshake and Husted’s campaign for comment but did not receive an immediate response.How could the 2026 elections shape US crypto laws and policy?Fairshake has been open about its intention to “back pro-crypto candidates” in 2026 as part of a goal to fill the next session of Congress with lawmakers supportive of policies favored by the industry. The PAC reported in January that it held $193 million in cash on hand ahead of the elections.Beyond PACs like Fairshake and Digital Freedom Fund, other groups aligned with crypto interests have already tried to influence 2026 voters. The Fellowship committee, backed by Cantor Fitzgerald and Anchorage Digital, reported spending more than $11 million between August 2025 and August 2026, largely on media supporting House and Senate candidates.Magazine: Can the SEC and CFTC’s pro-crypto rules be overturned? Legal opinion

Stablecoin-funded remittances continue to offer substantial cost savings over traditional money transfers, particularly in emerging markets, reinforcing one of the leading use cases for digital dollars as payment activity grows.According to a new third-quarter report from Borderless.xyz, a stablecoin payments network, sending a $200 remittance through stablecoin-funded payment rails costs a median of 1%, or $2, compared with 6.36%, or $12.72, for traditional remittances, based on World Bank data.The difference makes stablecoin-funded remittances roughly 84% cheaper, although the comparison uses Borderless’s third-quarter 2026 pricing and World Bank figures from the same period in 2025.The savings are also substantial across emerging markets. In Sub-Saharan Africa, stablecoin-funded remittances cost 2.9%, compared with 8.46% for traditional transfers. In Latin America, the costs are 1.25% and 5.64%, respectively.Business payments made through stablecoins are also significantly cheaper, according to the report. A $10,000 stablecoin-funded transfer to the eurozone costs as little as $26 when routed through the lowest-cost provider, compared with $52 across all corridors at the median provider.By comparison, a traditional international bank wire costs between $135 and $150 for the same amount, including transfer fees and an assumed 1% foreign-exchange margin.Stablecoins offer significant cost savings on larger business transactions. Source: Borderless.xyzRelated: Mastercard brings stablecoin balances into traditional banking and card paymentsStablecoin payouts settle in minutes, but reliability variesBeyond cost savings, the Borderless report found that stablecoin-funded payments can reach recipients’ local bank accounts in minutes, depending on the payment network used.In Brazil, payouts through the PIX network settled in a median of two minutes during the third quarter, while Mexico’s SPEI network took three minutes. Colombia’s PSE network also recorded a median settlement time of two minutes.By comparison, traditional SWIFT transfers typically settled the next business day, with the slowest 10% taking three business days.However, payment completion rates varied considerably. Mexico’s SPEI network successfully completed 98.6% of payouts, followed by Brazil’s PIX at 97.8%. Colombia’s PSE network completed 79%, while Costa Rica’s SINPE recorded a completion rate of just 73%.The findings come as stablecoin transaction activity continues to grow. Standard Chartered recently highlighted rising transaction volumes despite relatively flat growth in the overall stablecoin market capitalization this year. The bank expects the market to reach $2 trillion by 2030, two years later than its previous forecast.Related: Crypto Biz: Wealthy investors are buying crypto, but their advisers aren’t sold

Tokenization is beginning to reshape traditional financial markets, with stocks increasingly in focus. Much of the attention has centered on the $3.3 billion in tokenized equities now onchain, according to RWA.xyz, but one of the biggest innovations may be what happens before Wall Street opens and after it closes.According to the latest industry data, more than 70% of tokenized stock trading volume on BNB Chain now occurs outside regular US market hours, with similar patterns emerging on Solana and Base.Tokenized equities allow investors to trade US stocks across time zones without waiting for Wall Street’s opening bell, potentially changing how liquidity is distributed throughout the day.However, many platforms driving this activity remain off-limits to American investors, even as US regulators begin to make room for tokenized stock trading.This week’s Crypto Biz looks at tokenized stock trading, the economics of Bitcoin mining, proposed accounting rules that could make it easier for companies to treat stablecoins as cash equivalents, and Strive’s expanding Bitcoin treasury.Tokenized stocks find an audience beyond Wall Street’s trading hoursMost tokenized stock trading on Solana and BNB Chain now takes place outside regular US market hours, suggesting that around-the-clock access is becoming a major selling point for equities issued onchain.According to Blockworks data cited by The Kobeissi Letter, more than 70% of tokenized stock trading volume on BNB Chain occurs outside the traditional 9:30 am to 4:00 pm Eastern trading window. The figure is 63% on Solana and nearly 60% on Base.Activity is also picking up. Jupiter reported a 50% month-over-month increase in tokenized asset trading volume, while RWA.xyz data showed the value of tokenized stocks climbing 15% over the past 30 days to nearly $3.3 billion.The trend comes as the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s innovation exemption opens the door for qualifying platforms to trade tokenized US-listed stocks on public blockchains, subject to disclosure and shareholder protection requirements. However, existing offerings such as xStocks and Ondo Global Markets remain largely unavailable to US investors, limiting domestic participation in the growing market.Source: The Kobeissi LetterStrive adds 3,311 Bitcoin as investors exercise $208 million in warrantsBitcoin treasury company Strive increased its holdings by more than 11% last week, using proceeds from warrant exercises to expand its cryptocurrency reserves while increasing Bitcoin exposure per share.In a Tuesday filing with the SEC, Strive disclosed that it purchased 3,311 BTC during the week ending Oct. 9 at an average price of roughly $84,500 per coin. The purchases brought its total holdings to 32,773 BTC, making it the fifth-largest publicly traded corporate Bitcoin holder.CEO Matt Cole said investors exercised $208 million in warrants, with about $15.3 million still outstanding ahead of Tuesday’s expiration.Strive also amended its governing documents to establish a binding $100 minimum issuance price for its SATA preferred shares, which were trading at $99.40. Meanwhile, Bitcoin traded near $83,300, below Strive’s average purchase price for the week, while its common stock, ASST, was little changed at $27.52.Source: Matt ColeBitcoin miners face steep financing costs in AI expansionBitcoin mining companies expanding into artificial intelligence and high-performance computing face a widening gap in borrowing costs as lenders examine the risks of large-scale data center projects.According to BlocksBridge Consulting’s Miner Weekly, securing AI customers is only part of the challenge. Miners also need billions of dollars to build facilities, purchase equipment and secure power infrastructure, with financing terms increasingly dependent on the customer and likelihood of project completion.The differences are evident in recent deals. IREN secured $3.65 billion in financing in June at a blended interest rate of 6%, followed by another $2.4 billion in August at a fixed 9% rate. The agreements cover different projects, however, making direct comparisons difficult.The financing needs are substantial. A June BlocksBridge analysis citing VanEck estimated that publicly traded Bitcoin miners required $50 billion to fund their AI infrastructure ambitions. IREN alone faced a $21.1 billion funding gap, followed by Riot Platforms at $7.2 billion and HIVE Digital Technologies at $4.6 billion.US accounting proposal could give stablecoins a corporate boostA proposed change to US accounting standards could make stablecoins more attractive to corporate treasuries by allowing qualifying tokens to be treated as cash equivalents on company balance sheets, according to a report from payments blockchain Tempo.Under current accounting practices, stablecoin holdings may not count toward a company’s reported cash reserves, potentially affecting liquidity ratios and loan covenants even when the tokens are fully backed by US dollars.The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) proposal could change that, though Tempo noted that companies would need direct redemption rights with stablecoin issuers to qualify. For example, simply purchasing USDC through a cryptocurrency exchange would not necessarily meet that requirement.Coinbase already classified USDC and other payment stablecoins as cash equivalents in its 2025 annual report, supported by its redemption arrangement with Circle.The proposal is open for public comment until Nov. 19, after which FASB will review the feedback before determining the final rules and their effective date.Crypto Biz is your weekly pulse on the business behind blockchain and crypto, delivered directly to your inbox every Thursday.