Senator Richard Blumenthal, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, sent Cantor Fitzgerald’s chairman, Brandon Lutnick, a letter on Thursday demanding records on the investment bank’s financial relationship with Tether. The request includes details of how much Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and his family made from the arrangement.
The letter, addressed to Brandon Lutnick, was copied to Senator Ron Johnson, the subcommittee’s chair. It sets out 13 numbered requests covering Cantor’s Tether stake, its revenue and its compliance practices.
Blumenthal asked the firm to explain how it monitors Tether’s compliance with banking and sanctions laws. Cantor has until 23 October to reply.
The scrutiny follows a report published last month by Democratic investigators on the same subcommittee, which said Tether’s USDT had become a key tool for Iran’s shadow banking network. Tether has said it froze nearly $550 million in Iran-linked USDT this year.
In the letter, Blumenthal wrote: “Disturbingly, Cantor Fitzgerald's lucrative business arrangements with Tether come at the expense of America's national security.”
Cantor’s relationship with Tether began in 2021, when it started holding a portion of the US Treasuries that back Tether’s reserves. The firm reportedly now custodies tens of billions of Tether’s US Treasury bill reserves.
Howard Lutnick was Cantor’s chairman and chief executive when he helped negotiate its Tether investment in April 2024. Cantor acquired rights to a 5% stake in Tether.
After the Senate confirmed Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary in February 2025, he stepped down from Cantor. The firm then named his son Brandon chairman and another son vice chairman.
Blumenthal alleges that Cantor’s Tether stake rose in estimated value from $600 million to $10 billion since Trump returned to office. He also alleges that Howard Lutnick received more than $250 million in that period, including a $192 million distribution from Cantor Fitzgerald.
Blumenthal wrote that Cantor collects ‘tens of millions of dollars’ each year from the assets it holds for Tether. The records request now puts the firm’s investment, custody fees and compliance oversight in the same file.
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