- Funding for the Cantor program will start at $2 billion, but could reach tens of billions of dollars
- Cantor has a 5% ownership stake in Tether, worth $600 million
- Howard Lutnick will step down as CEO of Cantor when his position as US Secretary of Commerce is confirmed by the US Senate.
Cantor Fitzgerald is reportedly planning a multi-billion dollar program, which could see him get support from Tether.
According to people familiar with the matter, the planned program would enable the financial services company's clients to lend dollars using bitcoin as collateral, according to reports. Bloomberg. Funding for the program will start at $2 billion, but could reach tens of billions.
While lending has not yet begun, then… pregnancy If he participates, he will be one of several financial contributors to the program. Cantor already manages most of Tether's assets through its own custody business, bringing in tens of millions of dollars to Cantor each year.
Most recently, Cantor concluded a deal with Tether, where it acquired a 5% ownership stake in Stable coinReports worth up to $600 million The Wall Street Journal. According to the report, a statement was issued before the announcement of the selection of Howard Lutnick, CEO of Cantor, as US Secretary of Commerce.
A Tether spokesperson said that “its relationship with Cantor is strictly professional” and that “Lutnick’s participation in a transition team that somehow translates into influencing regulatory actions is laughable.”
“Show me the money.”
News of Cantor's plans comes as Lutnick was nominated for Commerce Secretary last week as president-elect Donald Trump He is preparing to enter the White House in January.
In an effort to comply with “government ethics rules,” Lutnick plans to step down from Cantor once his position is confirmed by the U.S. Senate. At present, Lutnick controls his company's relationship with Tether; However, once he dethroned himself, he would hand this over to his teammates.
Lutnick met with Giancarlo DeFasini, owner of Tether, in the Bahamas in 2021 to determine whether Tether owned the assets it claimed it did. Speaking at a cryptocurrency conference in July, Lutnick said:
“I basically told him the move line. I said, 'Show me the money.' And we found every penny, and they had every penny, but they got it in what I would call beautiful deserted places.”
In January, Tether challenged the UN report Which identified USDT as being widely used for money laundering. Tether said it was “disappointed in the UN assessment,” which ignored what the stablecoin issuer was doing by helping developing countries in emerging markets.
In its response, Tether reiterated its cooperation with law enforcement and stated that Tether transactions can be tracked on the blockchain, making it “an impractical option for illicit activities.”