Former CFTC Chair Nominee Brian Quintenz Joins Coalition for Prediction Markets
The former CFTC commissioner and former nominee to lead the agency will serve as a senior adviser to the industry group backed by Kalshi, Coinbase, Crypto.com and Robinhood.
The former CFTC commissioner and former nominee to lead the agency will serve as a senior adviser to the industry group backed by Kalshi, Coinbase, Crypto.com and Robinhood.
Brian Quintenz, the former Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) commissioner whose nomination to chair the agency was withdrawn last year, has joined the Coalition for Prediction Markets (CPM) as a senior adviser.
The appointment adds another prominent former policymaker to the industry’s lobbying effort as prediction markets continue to battle state regulators and push for broader acceptance in Washington.
Quintenz Joins Prediction Market Advocacy Group
CPM announced Wednesday that Quintenz had joined the organization as a senior adviser. The advocacy group’s members include Kalshi, Crypto.com, Coinbase, Robinhood and Underdog.
“Good regulation advantages strong innovation — and that doesn’t have to be specific to one firm,” Quintenz told Politico.
Quintenz joins former House Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick McHenry as one of the organization’s senior advisers. The coalition is led by former Democratic Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney, who serves as its president.
Quintenz’s Failed CFTC Chair Nomination
Quintenz’s appointment comes nearly a year after his unsuccessful bid to become CFTC chairman.
A former Republican CFTC commissioner and former global head of policy at Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto arm, a16z crypto, Quintenz also serves on Kalshi’s advisory board. He was widely viewed as an ally of the digital asset and prediction market industries.
President Donald Trump nominated Quintenz in February 2025 to serve as chairman of the CFTC. However, his nomination faced growing scrutiny from lawmakers over his ties to the prediction market and cryptocurrency industries.
Critics questioned whether his relationships with industry participants could create conflicts of interest, despite Quintenz’s pledge to resign from Kalshi and recuse himself from matters involving the company.
In September 2025, reports emerged that the White House had been considering alternative candidates. President Trump ultimately withdrew Quintenz’s nomination later that month.
Quintenz Claimed Winklevoss Brothers Influenced His Removal
Before the withdrawal of the nomination, reports suggested that Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the co-founders of crypto exchange Gemini, had lobbied against Quintenz’s confirmation.
The controversy intensified after Quintenz publicly released private messages he had exchanged with Tyler Winklevoss on X. According to Quintenz, Tyler Winklevoss sought assurances that, if confirmed as CFTC chairman, he would revisit the agency’s prior settlement with Gemini. Quintenz said he refused to provide such assurances.
In the post, Quintenz wrote that he released the messages because he believed President Trump “might have been misled.”
He added,
The Winklevoss brothers denied the allegations and disputed Quintenz’s account of events.
