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President-elect Donald Trump has confirmed the nomination of Tether’s US custodian for a position in his incoming Cabinet.
Howard Lutnick, chair and CEO of asset management firm Cantor Fitzgerald, will serve as Secretary of Commerce, subject to approval by the Senate.
In a statement from the transition team, Trump said that Lutnick will lead on the administration’s tariff and trade agenda.
He will also have direct responsibility for the Office of the US Trade Representative — a separate executive duty.
Already a co-chair of Trump's transition team, Lutnick was tipped for Treasury secretary but did not get the role.
Nonetheless, Trump described Lutnick as “a dynamic force on Wall Street for more than 30 years”, and credited him for his “sophisticated” work within the transition team so far.
After the nomination was confirmed, Lutnick released a statement through BGC Group, a Nasdaq-listed investment broker where he also serves as chair and CEO.
In the statement, Lutnick confirmed that he will step down from his positions at Cantor, BGC and commercial real estate firm Newmark, where he holds the executive chair.
“I intend to divest my interests in these companies to comply with US government ethics rules, and do not expect any arrangement which involves selling shares on the open market,” he said.
“I look forward to this new chapter in my life, working for President Trump to promote economic growth, drive innovation and strengthen our nation's financial security.”
Lutnick’s crypto connection
Lutnick is connected to the crypto industry through Cantor’s role as a custodian of Tether’s reserve assets.
Cantor has been a Tether custodian since early 2021, though the exact proportion of Tether’s assets that the firm manages is unknown.
In Tether’s latest attestation report, the stablecoin issuer said it currently has $85bn in US Treasury bills backing its stablecoin, although Tether’s financials have still never been audited.
Lutnick has previously said that Cantor manages “many, many” of Tether’s assets, and has downplayed the firm’s lack of an audit with assurances that Cantor has “seen the money and they have it”.
Prior to Lutnick’s nomination, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Tether is under US criminal investigation for money laundering failures and sanction evasion, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Tether dismissed the report as “rank speculation”.
