According to disclosure documents filed with the U.S. House of Representatives, Georgia Representative Mike Collins purchased up to $65,000 worth of Ether ( ETH ) in 2024.

According to a Jan. 9 filing with the House’s Financial Disclosure Reports Database, Rep. Collins revealed he had purchased up to $15,000 worth of ETH on Jan. 3 and up to $50,000 worth of the token on Jan. 8. The U.S. lawmaker has been trading ETH since at least 2023 according to similar filings, reporting total purchases up to $110,000.

US lawmaker reports ETH purchases up to $65K in 2024 image 0 Source: Financial Disclosure Reports Database , U.S. House of Representatives

Under the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, or STOCK Act, U.S. lawmakers are largely required to report investments to Congress. However, they are still permitted to oversee or propose legislation on matters potentially related to their investments, which many have called a potential conflict of interest between their public service and personal wealth. 

Collins’ ETH purchases came as the token’s price  surged more than 11% in the last seven days, from roughly $2,200 on Jan. 3 to $2,466 at the time of publication. Some experts have speculated that ETH could rally in response to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission potentially approving a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund for the first time — an event expected by Jan. 10.

Related: US lawmakers introduce bipartisan bill proposing ban on members investing in ‘financial instruments’

The disclosure filings came roughly nine days before the U.S. government is set to shut down should Congress fail to pass a spending bill before Jan. 19. Previous shutdowns have created ripples across markets , including cryptocurrencies, partly due to economic uncertainty.

Republican Party candidates for the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election will face off in Iowa on Jan. 10 for the first debate of the election season. Pro-crypto candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who polled  roughly 6% in Iowa, will not appear on the debate stage against Florida Governor Ron Desantis and Nikki Haley.

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