The White House withdrew former Commodity Futures Trading Commissioner Brian Quintenz’s nomination to run the agency late Tuesday, capping off a month-long fight over U.S. President Donald Trump’s pick for agency chair.
Trump tapped Quintenz shortly after retaking office. Quintenz joined venture firm Andresseen Horowitz’s global head of policy, and has been an adviser to firms like prediction marketplace Kalshi since leaving the CFTC following his term as commissioner.
In a statement to CoinDesk, Quintenz said, “Being nominated to chair the CFTC and going through the confirmation process was the honor of my life. I am grateful to the President for that opportunity and to the Senate Agriculture Committee for its consideration. I [am] looking forward to returning to my private sector endeavors during this exciting time for innovation in our country.”
Politico and Punchbowl News earlier reported that the White House had withdrawn Quintenz’s nomination.
Quintenz has made statements in favor of the crypto industry since his first term as commissioner, including floating the idea of a self-regulatory organization for the industry similar to securities markets’ Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). Despite this, crypto exchange Gemini co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss — both of whom support Trump — opposed his nomination in late July, with Tyler telling CoinDesk that he did not believe Quintenz’s views on developers and his work with Kalshi qualified him for the role.
However, Quintenz released messages he had exchanged with the Winklevoss brothers earlier this month, suggesting that they really opposed his nomination because he would not commit to a public view on a CFTC enforcement action against Gemini. In his messages, Quintenz said that it would be better for a “fully confirmed chair” to review the CFTC’s actions.
Crypto lobbyist organizations and companies wrote a public letter supporting his nomination in a late August bid to put his nomination back on track.
Still, the White House asked the Senate Agriculture Committee to postpone a vote on Quintenz’s nomination a few times in July. Last week, Semafor reported that it had begun vetting new candidates to run the agency, which at present is helmed by Acting Chairman Caroline Pham. All of the other commissioners at the agency at the start of 2025 have since left, and Pham has indicated her intention to depart as well at some point, CoinDesk previously reported.
The CFTC’s potential lack of a permanent chair comes as Congress considers legislation that would give the agency a more prominent role in regulating crypto spot markets, though the legislative process is likely to be delayed by a pending government shutdown.
UPDATE (Sept. 30, 2025, 23:48 UTC): Adds additional context, clarifies that Quintenz joined a16z following his term as CFTC commissioner.
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