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Michael Selig, who serves as chief counsel for the crypto task force at the US Securities and Exchange Commission, faced questions from lawmakers on the Senate Agriculture Committee for his nomination to be the next chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
On Wednesday, Selig appeared before the committee and addressed questions and concerns from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle regarding his potential conflicts of interest, policy views and experience as the next CFTC chair, succeeding Caroline Pham.
In his opening statement, Selig said he had advised a wide range of market participants, including digital asset companies, and warned against the agency taking a regulation-by-enforcement approach, stating that it would drive companies offshore.
“We’re at a unique moment in the history of our financial markets,” said Selig. “A wide range of new technologies, products, and platforms are emerging […] the digital asset economy alone has grown from a mere curiosity to a nearly $4 trillion market.”
The confirmation of Selig, whom US President Donald Trump nominated to chair the CFTC following the removal of his first pick, Brian Quintenz, is expected to head for a vote soon. According to the Senate calendar, the Agriculture Committee is scheduled to discuss his nomination on Thursday.
Addressing DeFi, crypto enforcement, roles of agency
The prospective CFTC chair responded to questions from the committee chair, Senator John Boozman, who advocated for the agency to take a leading role in regulating spot digital commodity markets. The senator’s remarks came as the committee is expected to consider a market structure bill that would give the CFTC more authority to regulate crypto.
“The CFTC, and only the CFTC, should regulate the trading of digital commodities,” said Boozman.
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The Arkansas senator questioned Selig about his potential approach to decentralized finance if he were to be confirmed, an issue that reportedly divided many lawmakers on the market structure bill.
“When we’re thinking about DeFi, it’s something of a buzzword, but really we should be looking to onchain markets and onchain applications and thinking about the features of these applications as well as where there’s an actual intermediary involved […]” said Selig.
He added that it was “vitally important that we have a cop on the beat” in response to a question on regulating crypto, specifically spot digital asset commodity markets.
Democratic concerns about CFTC leadership
Senator Amy Klobuchar, the Democratic ranking member of the Agriculture Committee, pressed Selig and other lawmakers on the leadership at the CFTC. Since September, acting Chair Caroline Pham has been the sole commissioner at the agency, which usually has five members. Pham is expected to resign should the Senate confirm Selig.
“The CFTC has operated much of the last year without a full complement of bipartisan commissioners, and has been operating for months with only an acting chairman,” said Klobuchar. “This uncertainty surrounding the leadership at the CFTC has only created more chaos for people who rely on the CFTC.”
Selig said it was “very valuable to have a diversity of viewpoints,” and would “work with whoever the president chooses to appoint.” As of Wednesday, Trump had not announced any additional nominations for the CFTC commissioners, leaving four open seats if Selig were to be confirmed and Pham were to leave.
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New Hampshire has approved the issuance of a $100 million municipal bond backed by Bitcoin, in what appears to be the first structure of its kind at the US state level.
Minutes from a Nov. 17 meeting of the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority (BFA), the state’s business financing agency, show the board planned “to consider approving a resolution authorizing up to $100,000,000 bonds for a project to acquire and hold digital currency.”
Minutes from the following day record that directors voted to “approve the preliminary official intent, with no reservation, to issue a taxable conduit revenue bond for WaveRose Depositor, LLC of up to $100,000,000.”
According to a Wednesday Crypto in America report, the bond is backed by Bitcoin (BTC) and would let companies borrow against overcollateralized BTC held by a private custodian. The state or taxpayers do not back the bond; instead, BFA approves and oversees a private deal, while Bitcoin — reportedly held in custody by BitGo — covers investors.
According to the report, asset manager Wave Digital Assets and bond specialist Rosemawr Management designed the bond to utilize Bitcoin as collateral under the same rules that govern municipal and corporate bonds. Wave co-founder Les Borsai said the goal is to “bridge traditional fixed income with digital assets” for institutional investors.
Related: New Hampshire, North Dakota introduce bills for Strategic Bitcoin Reserve
“We believe this structure shows how public and private sectors can collaborate to responsibly unlock the value of digital assets and digital asset reserves,” he added.
The borrower is expected to post approximately 160% of the bond’s value in Bitcoin as collateral, and if the price of BTC drops below roughly 130%, a liquidation would ensure that bondholders stay whole. According to BFA Executive Director James Key-Wallace, fees from the transaction will fund the local innovation and entrepreneurship program, the Bitcoin Economic Development Fund.
New Hampshire dives headfirst into crypto
The news follows New Hampshire becoming the first US state to allow its government to invest in cryptocurrencies in May after Governor Kelly Ayotte signed a bill allowing the municipality to “invest in cryptocurrency and precious metals.”
Related: US won’t start Bitcoin reserve until other countries do: Mike Alfred
New Hampshire is also working on a bill to deregulate local cryptocurrency mining operations. In late October, a committee voted 4–2 to send the measure for further review in an interim study after it had been deadlocked in the State Senate twice.
The local administration is viewed as particularly welcoming to the cryptocurrency industry. In early February, Brendan Cochrane, an Anti-Money Laundering specialist at YK Law in New York City, argued that it could become an alternative for crypto companies relocating to the Bahamas.
The latest moves build on a longer history of crypto engagement. Back in 2015, New Hampshire was already working on a bill that would have allowed the state government to accept tax and fee payments in Bitcoin.
The bill ultimately failed in 2016, but it shows how early the local administration began to show interest in this asset class. Additionally, as early as 2016, some advocates were already arguing that New Hampshire was among the world’s most Bitcoin-friendly communities.
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