The post Cantor’s Howard Lutnick prepares to leave all companies, passes Tether deal to his son appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.

Howard Lutnick, the powerhouse behind Cantor Fitzgerald, is officially stepping away from all his business roles. With his nomination as Commerce Secretary under President-elect Donald Trump, Lutnick is clearing the deck. He’s exiting his leadership positions at Cantor Fitzgerald, BGC Partners, and Newmark to comply with ethics rules. Cantor is handing over a multibillion-dollar deal with Tether, the controversial crypto company, to his son, Brandon Lutnick. Brandon, a 20-something with Tether experience, interned in Lugano, Switzerland, counting gold bars for the company’s $660 million gold-backed token, Tether Gold. A $2 billion Bitcoin lending program Cantor Fitzgerald and Tether are reportedly crafting a lending program that could redefine Bitcoin’s role in traditional finance. The program would let clients borrow U.S. dollars against Bitcoin collateral, starting with $2 billion. Tether is expected to lead the charge, but other financial heavyweights may join the initiative. Recruitment for the project is already underway at Cantor, with a full-throttle approach. The company currently manages the lion’s share of Tether’s $132 billion reserves through its custody business, a relationship that rakes in tens of millions annually. Cantor also holds a 5% stake in Tether, valued at $600 million. The lending program, if successful, could amplify these numbers, making the partnership even more lucrative. What’s at stake? Critics have long questioned whether Tether holds adequate reserves to back its stablecoins. At the Nashville Bitcoin Conference in July, Lutnick tried to squash those doubts. “I basically told Tether CFO Giancarlo Devasini, ‘Show me the money.’ And we found every penny,” he said. Skeptics aren’t convinced. A U.N. report in January flagged Tether’s USDT stablecoin as a preferred tool for money laundering. Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury Department is lobbying Congress for powers to block stablecoin transactions tied to illicit activity. Tether insists it’s playing by the rules, claiming it…

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Filed under: News - @ November 25, 2024 9:24 am