Trump’s CFTC Nominee Posts Texts on X After Criticism from T. Winklevoss

Trump’s CFTC Hopeful Quintenz Takes His Dispute With Gemini’s Tyler Winklevoss Public

Brian Quintez, U.S. President Donald Trump’s nominee to run the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, published a text exchange he had with Tyler Winklevoss in his first public statement since his confirmation process appeared to stall over the summer at the White House’s direction, saying he believed that Trump “might have been misled.”

Quintenz shared a series of text messages he said he’d exchanged with Tyler Winklevoss, the co-founder and CEO of crypto exchange Gemini — which is set to go public this week — and Winklevoss Capital. Cameron Winklevoss, Tyler’s twin brother and co-founder, may have also been in the group chat, which was titled “tw-cw-bq” but did not send any messages in the screenshots shared by Quintenz. In the chat, dated July 24, Tyler Winklevoss asked Quintenz if he’d seen a post on X from June 17 where Tyler announced Gemini had filed a complaint with the CFTC’s inspector general about Division of Enforcement attorneys who had pursued charges against Gemini.

“I believe these texts make it clear what they were after from me, and what I refused to promise,” Quintenz said in his posts, representing a highly unusual move for a nominee in the midst of a federal confirmation process. “It’s my understanding that after this exchange they contacted the president and asked that my confirmation be paused for reasons other than what is reflected in these texts.”

Four New SEC Priorities Since Trump’s Return to the White House

This recent enforcement activity reflects a few key themes.

Fraud allegations are taking center stage. The SEC is prioritizing what it characterizes as clear-cut fraud—embezzlement, cherry-picking, and deceptive billing. However, the SEC is still bringing selected technical rule-based cases, especially when it views the rule as important for investor protection, such as the Custody Rule.

Fee disclosure and conflicts of interest remain a top priority. The SEC continues to scrutinize fee structures, adviser compensation incentives, and disclosures. Any conflict between what clients are told and what they are charged is fertile ground for enforcement.

Heightened focus on individuals. The SEC is looking to hold individuals accountable whether they are firm owners, individual representatives, or compliance professionals.

Robust compliance programs remain critical. Several cases involve alleged compliance failures by firm personnel. Strong internal controls and compliance programs might help prevent violations or mitigate enforcement consequences.

SEC Chair Threatens Global Companies’ Accounting Flexibility

SEC Chair Paul Atkins threatened Wednesday to reconsider a nearly two-decade-old decision allowing global companies to rely on international accounting rules when reporting their results to US investors.

Efforts to craft global climate reporting rules risk diverting resources and attention away from setting accounting rules that investors depend on, Atkins said according to prepared remarks to an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development event in Paris.

Poll: Who owns cryptocurrency? More young people, more men and more Republicans

Men (18%) are far more likely to say they own or trade crypto than women (7%) — and the divide is particularly pronounced among younger generations.

Among adult men under 30 years old, 20% say they own or trade crypto, while just 6% of similarly aged women say the same.

Twice as many men ages 30-44 (26%) as women in that age range (13%) say they own or trade crypto, too.

There’s another split along party lines. Twice as many Republicans (18%) say they own or trade crypto as Democrats (9%). President Donald Trump’s administration has moved to enact new policies aimed at embracing crypto, and he and his family have launched their own crypto-related ventures in recent months, too.

Clients Push Big Law Firms to Use Generative AI for Cost Savings

Law firm partners are wrestling with a new question from clients: How are you using generative artificial intelligence to lower the cost of your work?

Large corporate clients are increasingly asking law firms to explain how they are using AI as a prerequisite to winning their business, a trend that could be the camel’s nose under the tent for broader changes to the Big Law business model. […]

To be sure, GCs’ questions are still a nascent trend. It’s unclear how many companies are actually deciding which firms to hire based on responses to the questions.

But law firm partners said the questions are showing up in requests for proposals that clients put to law firms before making hiring decisions. They’re being asked to describe how they’re investing in technology to make their work more efficient, and what role AI will play in the process.