Blumenthal letter asks Cantor Fitzgerald about Tether ties
Senator Richard Blumenthal has written to Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Brandon Lutnick seeking details on the firm's relationship with Tether and its sanctions safeguards.
Why it matters: Cantor's custody of Tether's US reserves sits at the centre of Senate scrutiny of the stablecoin issuer, and Democratic election odds could soon give that scrutiny subpoena power.
Key points
- Cantor Fitzgerald holds and manages Tether's reserves in the United States, and the two firms share other business interests.
- Prediction markets put Democratic chances of a Senate majority at 61% on Kalshi and 64% on Polymarket.
Senator Richard Blumenthal is pressing Cantor Fitzgerald over its ties to Tether, the issuer of USDT, according to CoinDesk.
Cantor holds and manages Tether's reserves in the United States, and the two companies share a number of other business interests. Brandon Lutnick is the son of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who handed him the company's leadership when he joined President Donald Trump's administration.
Blumenthal has been scrutinising Tether's role in Iran's financial system. In the letter, he wrote that Cantor has profited from its relationship with Tether just as the issuer has earned from stablecoins used in illicit activities, and he asked about Cantor's banking and sanctions safeguards and about Howard Lutnick's history with Tether.
Prediction markets give Democrats a better-than-even shot at the Senate, at 61% on Kalshi and 64% on Polymarket, and show House majority odds above 90% on both platforms.
What to watch: The November election will decide whether Democrats win the seats that could give them committee subpoena power.
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