According to Politico, Ripple co-founder and executive chair Chris Larsen was among the investors supporting the American Perpetuals Exchange Corp. (APEC), a derivatives platform founded by Theodore Gillibrand, son of US Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. The latest reports reveal that Larsen is one of nearly three dozen Wall Street luminaries, venture capitalists and recent Stanford University alumni who have backed the startup. Other notable angel investors include hedge fund manager John Griffin, Washington-based investor Mark Ein, and Anduril Industries founder Palmer Luckey, a longtime supporter of President Donald Trump. As per Politico, Larsen was among a small set of investors supporting APEC, with individual stakes being relatively modest compared to the broader group of backers. The company has raised $30 million, with the majority of individual investors contributing between $5,000 and $10,000, though Larsen's exact investment amount remains undisclosed.
The reported investment comes while Senator Gillibrand remains involved in Senate negotiations over ethics provisions tied to the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act. The proposed legislation is expected to affect digital asset companies operating in the United States, including Ripple. Democratic lawmakers have been pushing Republicans, who hold a majority in Congress, to support efforts to add ethics language to the CLARITY Act, citing President Donald Trump's ties to the crypto industry. Republican leaders in the Senate are expecting the bill to pass the chamber in July, with Senator Cynthia Lummis saying in June that lawmakers were "working a little bit on ethics," including decentralized finance and illicit transactions as part of negotiations. Senate Republicans hold a slim majority in the chamber, meaning they will need some Democratic support to meet the 60-vote threshold for CLARITY to pass. The Senate is currently in its Independence Day holiday period and is set to return to session on July 13 before heading into another month-long state work period in August.
A spokesperson for Senator Gillibrand referred to her June 18 statement saying that her son was "a grown adult starting his own independent business" and she had "no involvement in it whatsoever." The senator's position reflects the independence of her son's venture from political considerations. Previously, Kirsten Gillibrand publicly stated that "congressmembers and government officials should not be allowed to profit from their insider status in the industry," but her spokesperson's response maintains that she has "no involvement" in her son's business. When asked for comment, James Singer, a spokesperson for Sen. Gillibrand, pointed to her recent statement that she has no involvement with APEC. The investment by a "who's who" of angel investors could raise new questions about the degree of separation between Theo Gillibrand's startup and his mother's political career, particularly given that both Griffin and Ein have previously donated to Sen. Gillibrand's campaigns.
Unveiled last month, APEC has quickly become the subject of intrigue in Washington due to its innovative business model. According to Politico, the company wants to offer trading in perpetual futures, a buzzy type of financial product that would be linked to U.S. stocks. Perpetual futures were first popularized in the crypto markets - a business that Sen. Gillibrand has championed while in Congress. Though Sen. Gillibrand does not sit on the committees that oversee crypto policy, she has long been the digital asset industry's top ally among Senate Democrats. She has partnered for years with Republicans on industry-friendly crypto legislation - long before most other senators were paying attention to the issue. The $30 million raised by APEC represents significant capital deployment in the derivatives market, with the platform's focus on perpetual trading contracts positioning it in a competitive space.
The investment by a major cryptocurrency executive in a derivatives platform founded by a senator's son has drawn attention to the intersection of traditional finance and digital assets. The $30 million raised by APEC represents significant capital deployment in the derivatives market, with the platform's focus on perpetual trading contracts positioning it in a competitive space. The investment comes as the Crypto Fear and Greed Index remains volatile as major figures enter the derivatives market, highlighting the ongoing evolution of institutional participation in digital asset markets. While the APEC funding story may appear separate from CLARITY policy talks, it is the simultaneous timing that's likely to influence political attention, as ethics language becomes part of the bill's final shape and stakeholders monitor how the Senate frames conflicts-of-interest concerns. The "who's who" of angel investors could raise new questions about the degree of separation between Theo Gillibrand's startup and his mother's political career, particularly given the involvement of multiple high-profile investors with political connections.
