Winklevoss Twins Said to Be Pushing Trump to Dump CFTC Nominee Quintenz
According to reports, billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss have contacted President Trump directly to request that he appoint a replacement for Brian Quintenz as the head of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Trump's 2024 campaign received $1 million from the brothers, who own the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini. However, some of the $1 million was returned because the donations were over the $844,600 per person cap. Being the first well-known figures in the cryptocurrency business to support Trump, the twins ignited a tsunami of support from the sector that played a crucial role in the president's success last November.
Politico was informed by anonymous sources that the brothers are worried Quintenz, if confirmed, won't do enough to change an agency that has frequently been sluggish to adapt to a quickly changing regulatory environment, especially when it comes to digital assets.
In February, Quintenz, a former CFTC commissioner, was named by Trump to head the commission. President Obama nominated Quintenz, a board member at prediction markets behemoth Kalshi, to the commission in 2016, but Congress did not approve the appointment before Obama's departure. The next year, Trump nominated him again.
Additional Quintenz Issues
According to a second source who spoke to Politico, the Winklevoss brothers are pressuring Trump to appoint a different person to lead the CFTC because, according to recent testimony by Quintenz, they are concerned that he will broaden the commission's regulatory purview and possibly highlight cryptocurrencies in the process.
According to reports, the brothers contend that this is an obvious indication Quintenz opposes the President's initiatives to establish the US as the global center for cryptocurrency. On Monday, August 4, the Senate Agriculture Committee, which is in charge of the CFTC nomination process, was scheduled to vote on Quintenz; however, it is thought that the White House blocked the plan.
Although Quintenz is currently supported by the Trump Administration, there is growing conjecture that certain White House officials support the Winklevoss brothers and believe Quintenz should be removed in favor of a different candidate.
Forecast Market Consequences
Rumors that Quintenz is losing support in the Republican-controlled Senate as a result of lawmakers' rising concerns about prediction markets like Kalshi and how those exchanges may impact regulated gambling options in their home states are fueling the excitement surrounding his CFTC nomination.
Quintenz's choice to head the CFTC came almost a month after Kalshi appointed the president's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., to an advisory position. Quintenz has indicated during confirmation proceedings that he thinks businesses like Kalshi are adequately covered by the Commodities Exchange Act (CEA).
Because prediction markets are federally regulated and operate in all 50 states, a luxury not available to traditional gaming corporations, that viewpoint may conflict with that of senators from states with a high concentration of commercial or tribal gaming.
The Winklevoss twins' disapproval of Quintenz differs from their earlier remarks on the nominee, but it doesn't seem to be based on prediction markets. Quintenz is "exactly the leader the CFTC needs," according to Cameron Winklevoss's February X post, while his brother referred to the nomination as a "great choice for crypto and for America."
