Trump’s CFTC pick Quintenz discloses crypto links, $3.4M assets
US President Donald Trump’s pick to chair the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has disclosed millions of dollars worth of assets, along with his various ties to crypto-related organizations.
In paperwork released by the US Office of Government Ethics on May 25, Brian Quintenz disclosed his key positions in crypto and market firms that would directly relate to the CFTC’s regulatory priorities and disclosed assets worth at least $3.4 million, according to a May 27 Bloomberg report.
Quintenz was a CFTC commissioner from 2017 to 2021 and is currently the global head of crypto policy at Andreessen Horowitz, a position he said he will step down from if the Senate confirms him as CFTC chair.
He holds an interest in three AH Capital Management investment funds, CNK Fund III, CNK Seed 1 Fund, and CNK IV Fund, plus capital commitments to related general partners.
He is also a board member of the prediction markets platform Kalshi and owns stock and unvested stock options in the firm, along with stock and vested stock options in the finance and lending brokerage Next Level Derivatives.
His portfolio intersects directly with two major CFTC policy areas, crypto asset regulation and prediction markets. Kalashi settled a major legal battle with the CFTC over election betting earlier this month.
Quintenz outlined the steps he will take to avoid conflicts of interest if confirmed as CFTC chairman in an agreement letter to John Einstman, the CFTC’s Designated Agency Ethics Official, dated May 21.
“I will not participate personally and substantially in any particular matter in which I know that I have a financial interest directly and predictably affected by the matter,” he stated.
An excerpt of Brian Quintenz’s letter. Source: US Office of Government Ethics
He added that he will resign from all positions and divest conflicting assets within 90 days of confirmation. This includes recusing himself from a16z-related matters for two years, recusing from Kalashi matters for one year, and forfeiting unvested stock options at multiple companies.
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Quintenz also said he would comply with standard conflict of interest laws and obtain ethics briefings, but will retain unpaid trustee positions for two family trusts.
Trump nominated Quintenz to head the financial regulator in February and is currently awaiting Senate confirmation.
CFTC commissioner exodus continues
The CFTC has seen an exodus of commissioners recently amid concern over the Trump administration’s crypto embrace, with potentially all four remaining positions being up for grabs this year.
On May 21, Democrat Commissioner Kristin Johnson announced that she plans to depart the agency later this year.
Meanwhile, Commissioners Summer Mersinger and Christy Goldsmith Romero previously said they would respectively step down on May 30 and May 31.
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Donald Trump has reignited his row with London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan after calling him a “nasty person” who has done “a terrible job”.
During an hour-long news conference with Sir Keir Starmer in Scotland, the US president hit out at the Labour mayor, who has responded with his own snipey remarks.
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Asked if he would visit London during his state visit in September, Mr Trump said: “I will, I’m not a fan of your mayor, I think he’s done a terrible job.
“A nasty person, I think.”
The prime minister then interrupted and said: “He’s a friend of mine.”
But the president added: “I think he’s done a terrible job but I will certainly visit London, I hope so.”
Sir Sadiq’s spokesperson then released a statement saying: “Sadiq is delighted that President Trump wants to come to the greatest city in the world.
“He’d see how our diversity makes us stronger not weaker; richer, not poorer.
“Perhaps these are the reasons why a record number of Americans have applied for British citizenship under his presidency.”
Sir Sadiq Khan was knighted in June. Pic: PA
They noted that Sir Sadiq has won three mayoral elections, including when Mr Trump lost the US election in 2020.
This is not the first time Mr Trump and Sir Sadiq have locked horns.
Read more:
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Scots divided as Trump heads to Turnberry
The PM told Mr Trump that Sir Sadiq is a friend of his – seen here laying wreaths for the anniversary of the 7/7 bombings. Pic: PA
During his first presidential term, Mr Trump called the London mayor a “stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London”.
Sir Sadiq then described Mr Trump as a “poster boy for racists”.
And in November 2024, after Mr Trump won his second term, Sir Sadiq said many Londoners would be “fearful” about what it would “mean for democracy”.
However, as Sir Keir tried to show diplomacy with Mr Trump after becoming PM, Sir Sadiq said he “wanted to work closely with the American president” ahead of his inauguration in January.
The London mayor said as somebody “who believes in democracy, and voting and elections, we should recognise the fact that Donald Trump is the elected president of the United States”.
But he added: “Let’s keep our fingers crossed that this president is different from the last time he was president.”
The SEC delayed decisions on the Truth Social Bitcoin ETF and Grayscale’s Solana Trust, extending review periods as the US Congress moves with crypto regulation.
The US House of Representatives will be in recess for the month of August, but the Senate still has a week of business to address two crypto bills before breaking.
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