Trump picks SEC crypto counsel Mike Selig to lead CFTC

The nomination requires Senate confirmation. If approved, Selig would lead the U.S. derivatives regulator as Congress weighs giving the CFTC clearer authority over the nearly $4 trillion digital-asset market, including products linked to bitcoin and ether. The agency already oversees a wide range of derivatives, from complex financial contracts and oil futures to prediction and election markets.

Selig previously worked at the CFTC as a law clerk under then-Chair J. Christopher Giancarlo and later became a partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher. His experience spans traditional commodities and digital-asset policy.

In a post on X, Sacks called Selig "deeply knowledgeable about financial markets and passionate about modernizing our regulatory approach in order to maintain America’s competitiveness in the digital asset era." He added that the administration’s digital-assets team "look[s] forward to continuing our work with Mike to deliver on President Trump’s promise to make the U.S. the crypto capital of the planet."

Acting Chair Caroline Pham is currently leading the CFTC and has indicated she plans to depart once a successor is confirmed. With Selig in place, the commission would set policy affecting crypto markets and prediction platforms that have grown quickly and raised new regulatory questions.

As GNCrypto wrote previously, the White House considered other candidates as Quintenz’s confirmation stalled, including Selig and Treasury counselor Tyler Williams. In July, the administration asked the Senate Agriculture Committee to pause a planned vote after outreach from Tyler Winklevoss, and Quintenz later posted text messages with the brothers. The CFTC has been operating with only an acting chair while lawmakers debate expanding its crypto oversight.