US President Donald Trump is gearing up to appoint Michael Selig as the new chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), following a pause in the prior nomination process when Brian Quintenz’s nomination was retracted. As reported by Bloomberg on Friday, the news came from an unnamed Trump administration official, though no formal announcement is yet available.
Currently, Selig is the chief counsel and senior adviser to SEC Chair Paul Atkins in the commission’s crypto task force. Analysts and influencers within the crypto community have dubbed him “pro-crypto,” which has sparked enthusiasm regarding his potential nomination.
Michael Selig
Michael Selig. Source: PLI
The CFTC nomination took a detour in September after Brian Quintenz faced pressure from Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, the co-founders of the Gemini crypto exchange. Following this, Trump withdrew Quintenz’s nomination. Quintenz has since indicated that he will shift back to the private sector.
Since 2024, Trump has been considering enabling the CFTC to oversee cryptocurrency regulation, which would see the agency collaborate with the SEC. This change was outlined in a report by Trump’s Working Group on Digital Assets.
Related: Crypto industry groups weigh in on CFTC’s future after key withdrawal
SEC and CFTC Collaborate on Crypto Policy
The Working Group has advised that the CFTC should oversee spot crypto markets and categorize most cryptocurrencies as commodities. Other crypto assets, such as tokenized stocks and bonds, fall under SEC jurisdiction.
In September, both agencies issued a joint statement on coordinating their regulatory efforts, a move praised for bringing much-needed clarity to the US crypto industry. In August, the CFTC initiated a “crypto sprint” to act on the policy recommendations from the White House’s Working Group on Digital Assets. Speculation about a merge between the CFTC and SEC has emerged from their joint initiatives, prompting Atkins to refute those claims, stating only Congress or the president holds that authority.
