Son of U.S. Commerce Secretary Endorses Tether Reserves: They Made Me a Believer in Bitcoin

Brandon Lutnick appointed Chairman of Cantor Fitzgerald

Brandon Lutnick took on the role of Chairman of Cantor Fitzgerald in February this year. Cantor Fitzgerald is a privately held financial services group. Just before Brandon Lutnick assumed the chairmanship, U.S. President Donald Trump appointed his father, former Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick, as Secretary of Commerce.

According to CoinDesk, the 27-year-old Brandon Lutnick stated during a meeting that when Cantor Fitzgerald first collaborated with Tether, there were numerous rumors circulating in the market questioning whether Tether truly possessed sufficient reserves as claimed. He pointed out that the main doubts at that time revolved around whether Tether was entirely backed by assets.

New York State Attorney General Letitia James had previously accused Tether of a nearly $1 billion funding gap in 2019. However, the regulatory body later reached a settlement with Tether and its sister company Bitfinex. Lutnick mentioned that he personally verified the company’s reserve assets, confirming that many rumors were unfounded. He added that since Tether’s settlement with New York State, the reserves have been adequate.

Earlier, Bloomberg reported that Brandon Lutnick interned at Tether in Lugano, Switzerland, in 2023. This raised questions about whether he had established a personal or professional relationship with Tether prior to assuming his role at Cantor Fitzgerald, potentially even assisting Tether in overcoming regulatory hurdles. In response, Brandon Lutnick clarified:

“Bloomberg wrote that I interned at Tether, which is not true. But I did learn a lot about cryptocurrency from Tether’s people – you could say they made me a Bitcoin believer.”