Senators demand answers

A pair of US Senators are pressing Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for answers after a report raised questions about his relationship with Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer, DLNews reported.

In a letter dated April 29, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden asked whether the alleged timing and structure of a Tether-linked loan could create a conflict of interest, DLNews said. According to the report cited by DLNews, a trust benefiting Lutnick’s four children borrowed from Tether in October. That was the same month, DLNews wrote, that Lutnick sold his multibillion-dollar stake in finance firm Cantor Fitzgerald.

The trust and the concern over influence

DLNews said the trust that borrowed from Tether holds more than half the equity in Cantor Fitzgerald, citing Bloomberg. DLNews also reported that the loan was reportedly backed by “all assets” in the trust.

Warren and Wyden wrote that if the reporting is accurate, “it would raise serious questions about your relationship with Tether and the company’s influence on your policy decisions,” DLNews reported. The Senators added that they wanted to ensure that “Tether has not sought to bribe or otherwise exert control or influence over you,” according to the DLNews text.

it would raise serious questions about your relationship with Tether and the company’s influence on your policy decisions,

DLNews also said Tether and the Department of Commerce did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

What the Senators want Lutnick to answer

DLNews reported that the letter follows prior scrutiny of crypto-linked ties in the Democratic agenda. It described the Senators’ approach as using crypto issues to highlight potential conflicts of interest.

The Senators asked Lutnick, per DLNews, whether the Tether-backed loan financed his divestment from Cantor Fitzgerald. They also asked whether he had a role in “procuring, soliciting, and/or negotiating the loan,” the loan’s size and terms, and whether he had contact with Tether or its executives since he became Commerce Secretary.

Lutnick’s history with Tether and Cantor

DLNews noted that Lutnick has a long history with Tether. It said he previously served as the longtime chairman and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald and that Cantor manages billions in US Treasury bonds that back USDT, Tether’s stablecoin.

DLNews also cited a 2024 Davos interview where Lutnick said, “There’s a company that I like called Tether,” and argued that Tether had “the money they say they have,” based on DLNews’ quotation.

Finally, DLNews said Lutnick agreed to divest from his Cantor stake when he became Commerce Secretary in February 2025, and completed that divestiture in October. DLNews framed the letter’s central question as whether the alleged loan helped provide capital connected to the Cantor stake transaction.

(As DLNews stated, Tether and the Department of Commerce did not immediately respond to comment requests.)