Author: Decrypt
Compiled by Deep潮 TechFlow
Deep潮 Summary: Cantor Fitzgerald, the custodian of the world’s largest stablecoin, USDT, is now under scrutiny by the U.S. Senate. This letter, containing 13 inquiries, links Tether, family interests of the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, and national security—potentially triggering ripple effects on the crypto industry’s compliance narrative and market confidence in USDT.
Senator Richard Blumenthal has requested that Wall Street firm Cantor Fitzgerald turn over records of its business relationships with Tether, the issuer of USDT, the world’s largest stablecoin, which underpins the entire cryptocurrency economy by being pegged to the U.S. dollar.
According to a letter on Thursday, he also wanted to know how much money Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick’s family made from this transaction.
“It is disturbing that Cantor Fitzgerald’s lucrative business arrangement with Tether comes at the expense of U.S. national security,” said Senator Blumenthal.
This letter, sent by Blumenthal in his capacity as the Democratic Ranking Member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, was addressed to Chairman Cantor and Brandon Lutnick, son of Howard Lutnick. It is a request for information, not a subpoena, and demands a response by October 23. The letter frames the minority’s investigation as targeting “the illicit use of cryptocurrencies, as well as self-dealing and improper transfers of benefits between the Trump administration and cryptocurrency companies.”
The letter does not allege that Cantor violated any specific laws, nor does it contain any findings of misconduct. The letter asks how the company verifies that Tether complies with U.S. sanctions and anti-money laundering regulations, and the statements regarding Tether and the Lutnick family originate from Blumenthal, based on media reports and his team’s prior work.
“As Tether earned countless interest and investment returns from the stablecoins used in these illegal activities, Cantor Fitzgerald also profited from its relationship with Tether,” Blumenthal wrote.
Given the long-standing and deeply intertwined relationship between Tether and Cantor Fitzgerald, as well as its substantive connections within the Trump administration, I am writing to request information regarding your company’s business relationship with Tether and how you detect violations of U.S. banking and sanctions laws,” the senator added.
Blumenthal wrote that since President Trump returned to the White House, Lutnick has earned over $2.5 billion, including $1.92 billion in dividends from Cantor. He also noted that during the same period, Cantor’s 5% stake in Tether rose from $600 million to approximately $10 billion, and the company has additionally collected tens of millions of dollars annually in fees for holding Tether’s assets.
Cantor serves as Tether’s custodian, responsible for safeguarding its reserve assets—the cash and other assets backing each circulating USDT. Blumenthal noted that although Tether claims to operate in El Salvador, “the vast majority of its assets are held within the United States and custodied by your company.”
Howard Lutnick led Cantor until his confirmation as Secretary of Commerce by the Senate in February 2025; the company is now chaired by his son, Brandon. The senator also requested details of any loans or legal arrangements to understand how Lutnick transferred asset ownership to his children.
This requirement corresponds to a previously reported Tether loan, issued to a trust fund for Lutnick’s four children, with the amount undisclosed and timed around when the children bought out their father’s shares in Cantor. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden questioned Lutnick and Tether about this in April.
When assets are transferred to a trust, the subject under investigation no longer holds legal ownership of those assets.
Ten days before this letter was sent, Democratic staff of the subcommittee released a report titled "Tether Tied to Terrorism." The report found that 84% of the 846 cryptocurrency wallets sanctioned or targeted for seizure due to involvement with Iran and its proxies used only or almost exclusively USDT.
The two lists underlying this key figure show significant differences: 87% of the 757 wallets designated by Israel’s Counter-Terrorism Finance Unit primarily use USDT for transactions, while the proportion is 57% among the 101 wallets designated by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which enforces American sanctions.
Tether can freeze wallets to prevent the transfer of tokens within them. The company stated on the same day that it has frozen approximately $550 million in funds linked to Iran this year, including $344 million in April and over $130 million in July. The statement did not directly address the report.
Blumenthal also requested access to Howard Lutnick’s personal records regarding Tether during his tenure at Cantor, including “any discussions with the White House or state and federal regulatory agencies about Tether, as well as lobbying activities conducted on behalf of Tether.”
Other inquiries concerned Cantor’s customer identity verification policies, whether the company had considered terminating its relationship with Tether, and its communications with the President’s Digital Asset Advisory Committee.
Cantor must respond by October 23. The letter also requests that the company preserve all documents, records, and communications related to its relationship with Tether during this period.