Jesse Powell the co-founder of Kraken started a legal battle against Twenty-Five Hundred Steiner Street Inc. because he believes the company blocked him from buying an apartment through unfair political and crypto-related preferences.

The suit which Twenty-Five Hundred Steiner Street Inc. received on February 5th breaks California housing laws. According to Powell the co-op team gave him various invalid denial reasons before making the sale impossible. On February 6 Powell announced on X (formerly Twitter) his absolute tolerance for elitist bigots breaking the law by discriminating against him.

1/2 I tried everything to avoid filing this lawsuit. Frankly, I'm fed up with condescending, elitist bigots unlawfully discriminating against me. This time it's housing in San Francisco. I had hoped to return to take part in the revitalization of the city. https://t.co/mRi4TpVo1X pic.twitter.com/1CbjlmLvx2

— Jesse Powell (@jespow) February 5, 2025

Kraken Stands Behind Powell

In legal paperwork Powell explains the co-op company and its members barred his buying initiative because of his background in cryptocurrency and political stance. The suit states that Powell suffered discrimination from the co-op board because FBI agents raided his home in 2023.

The lawyers defending Sam Bankman-Fried see cryptocurrency as unpopular with traditional political and financial leaders. The lawsuit explains that political figures oppose cryptocurrency because it damages their control over financial systems while they see it as both risky investment and risky power for everyday people.

The crypto industry stands behind Kraken co-founder Powell who leads this business as a top executive. Kraken resumed services on its American platform following a forced shutdown ordered by the SEC in 2023. Although he does not support a specific political party Powell pledged $1 million as a donation to help fund Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. 

The lawsuit mentions the apartment building houses prominent Democratic party leaders and calls it their San Francisco political power hub. According to the lawsuit Bruce Golden who works as a partner at Accel teamed up with other Democratic donors to stop this purchase.

One vote out of 11 non-selling board members approved Powell’s apartment purchase negotiation in September 2024. In October the board denied the sale because Powell provided no signed taxes plus they had financial worries. 

He states that the board failed to mention tax returns as a purchasing condition until after they approved his bid in September 2024 but before rejecting him in November 2024. The lawsuit asks the court to approve the sale while asking for money damages plus additional benefits with interest.