What Marc Andreessen’s ‘spirit walk’ means for crypto

If you had to name the most influential person in crypto right now, you could pick someone inspirational like Vitalik Buterin or an archvillain like SEC Chair Gary Gensler. But for sheer influence at this moment, there is no serious debate—it would be the prominent venture capitalist and crypto advocate Marc Andreessen, who has reportedly completed a self-described "spirit walk" outside of the political and media realms, and decided to throw his weight around Washington, D.C.

That's according to a fine profile by Puck's Teddy Schleifer, who is plugged into the world of money and power, and writes about it with more verve than most. If you've been wondering who is the driving force between the crypto industry's outsize new role in politics, this should answer your question:

These days, Andreessen is back, consumed by ideological fervor and more active in politics than he has been in decades, according to about two dozen friends, politicos, and influencers who have interacted with him over the years. His firm has quietly hired high-powered Republican and Democratic consulting firms to help them navigate Washington while hosting fundraiser after fundraiser at its Sand Hill offices for crypto-friendly candidates, setting up new political-action committees, and preparing to spend its founders’ fortunes to boost their portfolio companies.

This is a development that is worth watching as not only is Andreessen richer than Midas (he has plenty of "f--- you money" in Valley parlance), but he and his firm are masters at the media game. A former Fortune colleague once told me, only half-jokingly, that Andreessen Horowitz is a public relations agency masquerading as a venture capital firm. She's not wrong.

Andreessen himself is capable of friendly charm, as I discovered when he sat down with me and some colleagues at our office a few years back. But he's also capable of media-bending tricks like when he invented the tweetstorm and all but quit Twitter a few years later, before reemerging in a new political skin to throw thunderbolts at Google and other bastions of left-wing orthodoxy. You're never quite sure he means what he says, but Andreessen's obvious genius combined with his unpredictability inevitably gather attention. It also doesn't hurt that the man knows everyone, including in the same political realm he long professed to despise. Here's Schleifer again:

Andreessen, Horowitz, and their other top partner, Chris Dixon, are cultivating their foot soldiers. According to recent filings, they cut personal max-out checks to a number of pro-crypto Democrats in the second half of 2023, including Rep. Ritchie Torres, Rep. Jake Auchincloss (a former crypto investor), and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, all of whom the firm counts as key allies. Last month, I hear, a16z quietly hosted a fundraiser at its Menlo Park offices for Tom Emmer, the powerful House Republican...Andreessen enjoys a particularly warm texting relationship with Kevin McCarthy. [His firm] briefly employed McCarthy’s son.

The Puck piece is also full of insider D.C. gossip, such as a former top GOP aide now employed by a16z being "a Hill rat, not a political fixer—no [political fixer Chris] Lehane is a phrase I’ve heard a few times now—but his job is to figure it out." Stuff, in other words, that will make most folks (including those in crypto) glaze over but is total catnip for Washington types.

As for why Andreessen is jumping back into politics with two feet, that's anybody's guess. In the context of crypto, it could be because he wants to convert the country's lawmakers to the cause—or maybe it's just because his firm wants to ensure it can get the regulations it needs to cash out its many investments in crypto. Whatever the reason, it's good news for the crypto industry that, in Schleifer's words, Andreessen—famous for his "software is eating the world essay"—has chosen to eat Washington."

Jeff John Roberts
jeff.roberts@fortune.com
@jeffjohnroberts

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com