AMSTERDAM/NEW YORK, June 4 (Reuters) - The president of

U.S. crypto firm Ripple is "optimistic" that a lobbying push by

the crypto industry will yield results in this year's U.S.

elections, after her company helped the industry lead a record

fundraising haul to back political candidates who are

crypto-friendly.

San Francisco-based Ripple is the second-largest donor to

Fairshake, a so-called super PAC, which has raised $92.9 million

in a bid to influence the congressional elections in November in

favor of the crypto industry, according to OpenSecrets, a

research group that tracks influence in politics.

Super PACs backed by the cryptocurrency sector have raised

more than $102 million so far this cycle, the third-most of all

super PACs engaged in the 2024 election, according to data from

Public Citizen.

Independent political action committees known as super PACs

may raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions,

associations and individuals, then spend unlimited sums to

overtly advocate for or against political candidates.

Speaking at the Money20/20 fintech conference in Amsterdam

on Tuesday, Ripple President Monica Long told Reuters that the

PAC is bipartisan and has a single focus: supporting candidates

who back the regulations desired by the crypto industry.

"I think as an industry, especially for us companies based

in the U.S., we're frustrated with how far the U.S. is lagging

on setting rules," she said. "This whole dynamic of setting

rules through enforcement ... is really unproductive and not

getting us anywhere."

Asked if she was optimistic that the U.S. crypto industry's

voice will be heard, Long said, "I'm optimistic, yes. I'm

hopeful."

The crypto industry is increasingly trying to influence U.S.

lawmakers as it faces heightened scrutiny from regulators and

politicians, especially since bankruptcies at major crypto firms

in 2022 spooked investors, exposed fraud and misconduct and left

millions of crypto investors out of pocket.

Several leading crypto firms have been sued by the U.S.

securities regulator for alleged securities law violations,

including Ripple. A federal judge in July ruled that Ripple's

sale of its token, XRP, to sophisticated buyers amounted to

unlawful sales of unregistered securities, but also ruled that

XRP sold on public exchanges did not meet the legal definition

of a security.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking fines and

penalties totaling $2 billion in its case against the firm,

Ripple has said.

Crypto groups are pushing for lawmakers to pass a bill that

would curtail the SEC's oversight of the industry.

A report from Public Citizen said that roughly half of the

crypto industry's political war chest comes from direct

corporate expenditures, primarily from crypto exchange Coinbase

and Ripple, with the remainder contributed by venture

capitalists.

The industry's own data, however, suggests lobbyists could

face difficulties in winning support.

A survey by U.S. crypto company Digital Currency Group

published in May found that just 14% of voters in U.S. states

whose results could swing either Democratic or Republican own

cryptocurrency and 69% of them feel negative toward crypto,

compared with 31% who feel positive.

"While most voters are dissatisfied with the current

financial system, only a minority think crypto is the future of

transacting, or a new way to prosperity," the report said.

U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, last week vetoed what

he described as a Republican-led resolution that would

"inappropriately constrain the SEC's ability to set forth

appropriate guardrails and address future issues" relating to

crypto assets.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler has previously called the crypto

industry a "Wild West," riddled with fraud and investor risk.

Ripple's Long said the SEC appeared to have been on a "war

path" with the crypto industry in recent years, and that

everyone was hoping for a "change in tone."