Rep. Dina Titus urges probe into CFTC chair nominee Brian Quintenz over prediction market ties

Rep. Dina Titus is pressing the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to investigate potential incoming chair Brian Quintenz as he awaits a nomination vote.

The Nevada Democrat sent a letter to CFTC Acting Chair Caroline Pham on Monday asking the agency to answer questions on whether Quintenz violated CFTC policies, applicable federal statutes, or ethics pledges — specific to prediction markets and event contracts.

Quintenz’s nomination vote in the Senate Agriculture Committee has been thrown into disarray. The vote has been canceled twice over the past month. After the second vote’s cancellation, a Senate Agriculture Committee spokesperson said that it was due to a request from the White House.

Others say Gemini’s Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, among other industry players, have successfully voiced their concerns over Quintenz’s supposed agenda. Tyler Winklevoss told The Block last week that many in the crypto industry have “serious concerns with his nomination.”

Titus, who is also co-chair of the Congressional Gaming Caucus, brought up one point of contention over Quintenz’s role on the board of prediction markets company Kalshi. Quintenz has said he would relinquish his position on Kalshi’s board upon his confirmation.

Titus also cited recent findings of the author and predictions market expert Dustin Gouker, who found potentially concerning issues during Quintenz’s nomination process through a Freedom of Information Request Act. Gouker said a Quintenz associate may have requested non-public information from the CFTC about the approval processes for one or more “designated contract markets,” which, if approved, would compete against Kalshi.

“The communication asked for by Quintenz’s camp doesn’t appear to be that out of the ordinary in the course of preparing to take over a federal agency in general or the CFTC in particular,” Gouker wrote. “But there’s some question about whether Quintenz should be asking for or receiving some of this information, given the fact that he’s still a member of Kalshi’s board.”

The CFTC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A new era awaits the CFTC

President Donald Trump tapped Quintenz to lead the CFTC earlier this year. Quintenz was a commissioner at the CFTC during Trump’s first administration, and at the time, many in the crypto industry cheered that move. The CFTC will be instrumental in how crypto is regulated. Lawmakers in Washington are currently working on legislation that would give the agency broader authority over the industry.

If he becomes chair, Quintenz would join the agency as it is undergoing a major leadership shuffle. Four remaining commissioners have either stepped down in recent months or have announced plans to leave.

“As the Senate considers Mr. Quintenz’s nomination to chair this important agency, it is imperative that the public fully understand the extent of his involvement regulating a sector in which he has a substantial financial interest,” Titus said in the letter. “I am concerned that as Chair he will not uphold both his own ethical pledge and other laws and regulations related to conflicts of interest.”

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