Cantor Fitzgerald faces Senate Democrat’s probe over Tether ties

US investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald is facing scrutiny from a Senate Democrat over its ties to Tether, with Senator Richard Blumenthal demanding records on the firm’s partnership with the stablecoin issuer and how much Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s family has made from the arrangement. 

In a letter on Thursday, Blumenthal, the ranking Democrat on the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, asked Cantor chairman Brandon Lutnick to explain how it monitors Tether’s compliance with banking and sanctions laws, along with all communications involving Howard Lutnick about Tether, including after he left Cantor.

“Disturbingly, Cantor Fitzgerald’s lucrative business arrangements with Tether come at the expense of America’s national security,” Blumenthal wrote. 

The inquiry puts Cantor’s lucrative partnership with Tether under scrutiny. Cantor Fitzgerald acquired rights to a 5% stake in Tether in 2024 and reportedly custodies tens of billions of Tether’s US Treasury bill reserves. Blumenthal alleges that Cantor’s stake in Tether increased in estimated value from $600 million to $10 billion since Trump returned to office, and that Howard Lutnick received more than $250 million in that period, including a $192 million distribution from Cantor Fitzgerald.