The crypto industry is in an uproar after emails from Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) nominee Brian Quintenz began circulating on Capitol Hill this week, which sources told me is the reason his nomination has been delayed by the White House.
The emails, obtained via a FOIA request shared with The Post, show that during his nomination process to become chair, his associates tried to obtain information that has a direct impact on the betting markets the CFTC oversees — and which Quintenz has a personal financial interest in.
The main issue is that despite his pledge not to benefit from his access, Quintenz remains on the board of Kalshi, a betting company regulated by the CFTC.
Tyler Winklevoss, billionaire co-founder of Gemini, said he is alarmed about Quintenz’s conflict of interest and concerned that he isn’t aligned with Trump’s agenda, adding that he told Trump as much.
Winklevoss prefaced his comments to me by saying, “I support President Trump 100%.”
While Winklevoss thinks the ethical concerns are cause enough for the nomination to be yanked, he also said the Quintenz’s doesn’t seem to be on board with Trump’s deregulation agenda.
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“His stated positions are not aligned with President Trump and the Administration’s stated goals,” he said.
In a rather bizarre turn of events, Winklevoss said Quintenz boarded a plane on Wednesday, flew to New York, and arrived at his office unannounced looking for him. He was turned away and told Winklevoss was unavailable.
During his hearings, Quintenz said he wanted to expand the CFTC’s budget, staff and regulations.
“He has a Democratic playbook for his agenda — these are disqualifying positions,” a source in the crypto industry said.
The concern is widespread enough on Capitol Hill that sources say Quintenz may lack the votes to advance his nomination to the Senate.
“Senators are concerned because they don’t want to face criticism over ethical issues, which could fuel Democratic campaign ads in the next midterm,” a source on the Hill told me. “I don’t know if he’ll be confirmed, but the emails certainly aren’t helping.”
Another source close to the White House said, “This is one issue where big banks and crypto are aligned: ‘Brian Quintenz has glaring ethical conflicts, and his nomination should be given serious pause.’”
Quintenz, a former CFTC commissioner who most recently led policy at Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto fund, did not respond to emails requesting comment.
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