CFTC chair claims Gemini case was politically motivated, seeks to reverse $5M settlement

The CFTC chair seeks to roll back an enforcement action on the company founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, donors to Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign and attendees at White House events.

US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Michael Selig is claiming that the agency under former President Joe Biden “politically targeted” the co-founders of cryptocurrency exchange Gemini through enforcement actions.

In a Tuesday CNBC interview, Selig said under his leadership, the CFTC was “trying to get back to a baseline” on enforcement, after what he claimed was politicization by the Biden administration. While the Selig acknowledged that he is a political appointee nominated by US President Donald Trump, he claimed that the recently reported staff cuts targeted people “engaging in lawfare.”

“The Biden administration weaponized the federal agencies against the crypto industry and many other industries,” said Selig. “They politically targeted people like the Winklevoss twins, and that’s not acceptable. We’re righting those wrongs. We’re gonna start fresh. The agency should not be used to engage in lawfare.”

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