Just one day after Mike Selig’s confirmation hearing to become President Donald Trump’s next chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Senate Agriculture Committee advanced his name for a final vote in the full Senate, moving him that much closer to being a major regulator of the crypto industry.
Nominee Selig, a senior official who works on crypto policy at the Securities and Exchange Commission, will await the final confirmation vote before he can be sworn in to lead the U.S. commodities watchdog. In that role, Selig is likely to lead U.S. oversight of much of the digital assets sector, especially as Congress continues to work on legislation to add to the agency’s powers.
“This is a critical moment for the CFTC as Congress considers expanding the agency’s authority,” said committee chairman John Boozman, an Arkansas Republican. “Strong leadership is essential to implementing new policies and responsibilities. Michael Selig is the right person to strike that balance.”
Selig had been Trump’s second choice to lead the agency after he dropped the nomination of former CFTC Commissioner Brian Quintenz, who was openly criticized by a top crypto executive close to the president: Gemini CEO Tyler Winklevoss. But Quintenz did not reach this final stage of the process.
As an attorney at the SEC, Selig has been at the center of work on the agency’s Project Crypto, which aims to establish friendly policies to encourage the crypto industry. He has spoken frequently about digital assets in his confirmation hearing, saying that establishing appropriate policies will be a “critical mission” at the CFTC.
“This is a good sign for the industry and the US regulatory system, not only to have an expert in digital assets leading efforts at the CFTC on a number of fronts, but specifically to inform ongoing market structure regulatory debates,” said Digital Chamber CEO Cody Carbone, in a statement.
The CFTC’s own “crypto sprint” instituted by Acting Chair Caroline Pham has run parallel to the SEC’s crypto efforts. Pham has pushed a number of policies that would land in Selig’s hands if he is confirmed.
