Just a day after Mike Selig’s confirmation hearing to become President Donald Trump’s next chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Senate Agriculture Committee advanced his name to a final vote by the full Senate, bringing him that much closer to becoming a major regulator of the crypto industry.
Nominee Selig, a senior official working on crypto policy at the Securities and Exchange Commission, will wait for that final confirmation vote before he can be sworn in to lead the U.S. commodities watchdog. In this role, it is likely that Selig would lead U.S. oversight of much of the digital assets sector, especially as Congress continues to work on legislation to expand the agency’s powers.
“This is a critical time for the CFTC as Congress considers expanding the agency’s authority,” said commission Chairman John Boozman, an Arkansas Republican. “Strong leadership is essential to implementing new policies and responsibilities. Michael Selig is the ideal person to strike this balance.”
Selig had been Trump’s second choice to lead the agency after dropping 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 make it to this final step in the process.
As an attorney at the SEC, Selig was at the center of work on the agency’s Crypto Project, aimed at establishing friendly policies to encourage the crypto industry. He spoke often about digital assets during his confirmation hearing, saying establishing appropriate policies would be a “critical mission” of the CFTC.
“It’s a good sign for the industry and the U.S. regulatory system, not only to have a digital asset expert leading the CFTC’s efforts on a number of fronts, but specifically to inform ongoing legislative debates over market structure,” Digital Chamber CEO Cody Carbone said in a statement.
The CFTC’s “crypto sprint,” instituted by Acting Chair Caroline Pham, ran parallel to the SEC’s crypto efforts. Pham proposed a number of policies that would fall into Selig’s hands, if confirmed.
