President Donald Trump has named his new selection to steer the U.S. Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee, formally backing Securities and Change Fee lawyer Mike Selig after jettisoning his one-time choose of former CFTC Commissioner Brian Quintenz.
The near-term management of the Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee might be a weighty matter for the crypto trade because the company is contemplated by present legislative efforts in Congress as a number one regulator of digital belongings transactions. If Selig is confirmed by the Senate — a hurdle Quintenz did not handle to clear — he’ll probably be shaping the implementation of latest U.S. crypto insurance policies.
White Home Crypto Czar David Sacks confirmed that Selig, lengthy rumored to be Trump’s best choice, can be given the nod early Saturday.
“Mike has not solely been instrumental in driving ahead the President’s crypto agenda as Chief Counsel of the SEC Crypto Job Drive, he additionally brings deep expertise in conventional commodities markets from his time working on the CFTC below former Chairman Chris Giancarlo,” Sacks mentioned in a submit on X.
Selig has been serving as a senior official on the SEC’s crypto effort, so he can be intimately conversant in the trade’s desires with regards to a complete U.S. regulatory regime. CoinDesk reported in early October that Selig had change into the frontrunner for the position.
Selig mentioned he was “honored” to be nominated in a submit on X.
“I pledge to work tirelessly to facilitate Effectively-Functioning Commodity Markets, promote Freedom, Competitors and Innovation, and assist the President make the US the Crypto Capital of the World,” he mentioned.
“Mike’s deep experience in monetary markets and digital belongings on the SEC makes him exceptionally properly positioned to carry readability, steadiness, and forward-looking steerage to the fee’s work,” mentioned Blockchain Affiliation CEO Summer time Mersinger, herself a latest commissioner on the CFTC.
The CFTC has lengthy been engaged with the U.S. crypto trade, and for years throughout SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s tenure it was thought of the friendlier of the 2 markets regulators. In 2015, the CFTC gave bitcoin
If Congress provides the CFTC hands-on authority over spot buying and selling in crypto commodities reminiscent of bitcoin and Ethereum’s ether
In the meantime, the SEC’s crypto efforts through which Selig has performed a component have accelerated below Chairman Paul Atkins, who declared that trade regulation is the company’s prime precedence. Below Performing Chairman Caroline Pham, the CFTC has sought to maintain tempo along with her “crypto dash.”
Pham has been searching for to go away her fee submit, a departure that was delayed when Trump’s White Home paused Quintenz’s affirmation, which was brazenly opposed by Gemini CEO Tyler Winklevoss. Although the remainder of the trade despatched a letter to Trump strongly in favor of shortly getting former az16 Crypto government Quintenz into the job, the lobbying fell brief.
Now the trade is shifting towards the brand new nominee, Selig.
“He understands the tech and the necessity to permit room for innovation, but additionally cares about attending to the correct authorized reply,” famous Amanda Tuminelli, government director of the DeFi Schooling Fund, in an announcement.
“Selig’s deep regulatory expertise and knowledgeable strategy to monetary innovation make him the correct selection to steer the CFTC at this pivotal second,” mentioned Ji Kim, the CEO of the Crypto Council for Innovation, in an announcement.
UPDATE (Oct. 25, 2025, 21:12 UTC): Provides Selig tweet.