Trump's CFTC Pick, Mike Selig, Clears Hurdle on Way Toward Confirmation Vote

Just one day after Mike Selig's confirmation hearing on becoming President Donald Trump's next chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Senate Agriculture Committee advanced his name toward a final vote by the overall Senate, moving him much closer to being a major regulator of the crypto industry.

Nominee Selig, a senior official working on crypto policy at the Securities and Exchange Commission, will await that final confirmation vote before he can be sworn in to lead the U.S. commodities watchdog. In that role, it's likely that Selig would 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 implement 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 didn't make it to this last stage of the process.

As a lawyer at the SEC, Selig has been at the center of work on the agency's Project Crypto, aimed at establishing friendly policies to encourage the crypto industry. He's spoke often about digital assets in his confirmation hearing, saying it'll be a "critical mission" at the CFTC to establish appropriate policies.

"This is a great sign for the industry and the U.S. regulatory system, not only to have a digital asset expert leading the efforts at CFTC on a number of fronts, but specifically for informing ongoing market structure legislative debates," said Digital Chamber CEO Cody Carbone, in a statement.

The CFTC's own "crypto sprint" instituted by Acting Chairman Caroline Pham has been running in parallel with the SEC's crypto efforts. Pham has pushed a number of policies that would land in Selig's hands, if he's confirmed.