Brian Quintenz, former Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) commissioner and Donald Trump’s nominee to chair the agency, has disclosed over $3.4 million in assets and significant connections to the crypto industry, raising new questions about potential conflicts of interest as he awaits Senate confirmation.
According to financial disclosure documents published by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics on May 25 and reported by Bloomberg on May 27, Quintenz detailed his investments and board memberships tied to crypto and financial tech firms, many of which fall under the CFTC’s regulatory scope.
Currently serving as global head of crypto policy at venture capital powerhouse Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Quintenz has pledged to resign from the role if confirmed. His financial interests include stakes in three a16z-managed funds — CNK Fund III, CNK Seed 1 Fund, and CNK IV Fund — along with capital commitments tied to their general partners.
Quintenz also sits on the board of Kalshi, a prediction markets platform recently embroiled in and settled a legal dispute with the CFTC over election-related contracts. He holds both stock and unvested options in the firm. Additionally, he owns equity and vested options in Next Level Derivatives, a fintech lending and brokerage company.
In a conflict-of-interest letter dated May 21 addressed to CFTC ethics official John Einstman, Quintenz outlined a series of measures he would take to mitigate any potential ethical breaches. These include resigning from all current board positions, divesting conflicting assets within 90 days of confirmation, and stepping back from any matters involving a16z for two years and Kalshi for one year. He also committed to forfeiting any unvested stock options and to receiving regular ethics briefings.
While he vowed to follow all federal ethics rules, Quintenz stated he would retain unpaid trustee roles for two family trusts.
Quintenz previously served as CFTC commissioner from 2017 to 2021 and was nominated by Trump in February to lead the commission amid sweeping turnover at the agency. The nomination comes at a pivotal time: three of the commission’s current four members are set to depart in rapid succession.
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