U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, the top Democrat on the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, has opened a new probe into reported payments that stablecoin giant Tether made to a consulting firm co-founded by former White House crypto adviser Bo Hines — while Hines was still helping shape cryptocurrency legislation, CoinDesk reports.
Image credit: Bo Hines (Credits: CoinDesk)
What the Blumenthal Tether Probe Alleges
Blumenthal sent letters on October 22 to Tether and to Nxum Group, the consulting firm Hines started with his father and another partner. Hines has since left the White House to become the CEO of Tether’s U.S. arm.
In his letter to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, Blumenthal wrote that the “highly unusual terms and nature of Tether’s business relationship with both Nxum and Bo Hines raise alarming ethical and legal concerns,” suggesting Tether was likely aware of the impropriety of paying a sitting White House official who played a direct role in shaping stablecoin legislation critical to its business.
Why This Matters for Crypto Regulation
This is the latest in a string of crypto probes Blumenthal has pursued from the investigations subcommittee. The reported payments — described as running into the millions — raise questions about the revolving door between government crypto policymaking and the private companies those policies benefit. CoinDesk notes that Hines’ move from the White House directly into Tether’s top U.S. executive role has already drawn scrutiny.
Neither Tether nor Nxum Group has publicly responded to the letters as of publication. This article reports what the source reports; no outcome of the investigation has been determined.
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Source: CoinDesk — read the full story there.