Cryptocurrency advocates are celebrating President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Howard Lutnick as Commerce Secretary, viewing the Cantor Fitzgerald CEO’s appointment as a potential catalyst for more favorable digital asset policies in the United States.
Lutnick, a vocal Bitcoin proponent who has led his firm into significant cryptocurrency ventures, has consistently advocated for treating Bitcoin on par with traditional assets like gold. At the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville this July, he declared, “Bitcoin is like gold and should be free trade everywhere in the world,” pledging to use Cantor Fitzgerald’s influence to advance that goal.
The billionaire nominee’s cryptocurrency credentials are substantial. Under his leadership, Cantor Fitzgerald has become deeply involved in the digital asset space, notably serving as a custodian for Tether’s reserve funds while many other Wall Street institutions have maintained their distance from the cryptocurrency sector.
In a bold move earlier this year, Lutnick announced a $2 billion Bitcoin lending program at the Nashville conference, designed to provide leverage to Bitcoin holders. He has also been a strong advocate for classifying Bitcoin as a commodity, which would subject it to less stringent regulation than securities.
The cryptocurrency industry’s enthusiasm for Lutnick’s nomination was evident in the immediate reaction from sector leaders. Alex Grieve, head of government affairs at crypto investment firm Paradigm, described Lutnick’s initial inclusion in Trump’s transition team as “huge for crypto” in a social media post.
However, Lutnick’s support is specifically focused on Bitcoin, rather than the broader cryptocurrency market. “I am a fan of crypto, but let me be very specific: bitcoin, just bitcoin. These other coins, they are just not a thing,” he stated in a CNBC interview last year.
If confirmed by the Senate, Lutnick would oversee the Commerce Department, which has played a role in researching ways to grow the digital assets industry in the United States. His appointment comes as the cryptocurrency sector seeks a more favorable regulatory environment following what many industry executives viewed as aggressive enforcement actions under the Biden administration.
The nomination has also drawn support from influential figures outside the crypto space. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who had initially advocated for Lutnick to receive the Treasury Secretary position, praised him as someone who would “actually enact change.” Robert F. Kennedy Jr. joined in the endorsements, describing Bitcoin as “the currency of freedom” and saying Bitcoin would “have no stronger advocate than Howard Lutnick.”
