At a glance
- Hines, a former White House crypto adviser, now leads Tether's U.S. arm.
- In a letter to Tether CEO Paulo 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."
- The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Nxum received large payments for consulting work for Tether while Hines was still advising President Donald Trump on crypto policy.
Senator Richard Blumenthal sent letters Thursday to Tether and Nxum Group seeking details of payments Tether made to Nxum, the consulting firm Bo Hines started with his father and another partner, according to CoinDesk.
Blumenthal is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. Hines, a former White House crypto adviser, now leads Tether's U.S. arm.
In a letter to Tether CEO Paulo 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." He also wrote that the payments indicated Tether was likely aware of the "illegality and impropriety" of paying an official with a direct role in shaping crypto legislation that was instrumental to its business. The allegation is Blumenthal's; the letters as described by CoinDesk do not announce a charge or a formal proceeding.
The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Nxum received large payments for consulting work for Tether while Hines was still advising President Donald Trump on crypto policy. Blumenthal asked for the terms of those arrangements. CoinDesk, which first reported on Hines' firm, said the company had little track record in politics and was making millions of dollars as the main campaign-advertising provider for a political action committee associated with Tether.
Ardoino criticized Blumenthal this week, saying the senator ignored important information and shared a report with the press before giving the company a look or a chance to respond. Tether spokespeople did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the letters, CoinDesk reported.
Blumenthal has also issued a report on Tether's financial connections to Iran and demanded answers about the issuer's connection to its U.S. financial partner, Cantor Fitzgerald, CoinDesk reported. The letters land while the federal rulebook for dollar tokens is still being drafted. Treasury's first GENIUS Act rulemaking, as this publication has reported, sets definitions and a comment schedule that will determine which issuers face U.S. rules.
Reported by the Regulation desk. Published . Corrections