With Mike Selig confirmed any day now to take over the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, his deputy chief Caroline Pham is closer to her long-standing plan to jump to cryptocurrency company MoonPay.
As CoinDesk reported last month, Pham was said to be planning to take on the role of chief legal officer and managing director of the company, a cryptocurrency-focused fintech company, which just obtained a New York fiduciary charter last month. It’s a path confirmed by the company on Wednesday, including a statement from Pham acknowledging her transition once she is replaced by President Donald Trump’s nominee, Selig.
“I am excited to join MoonPay at a crucial time,” Pham said, in an unusual career note that emerged before the regulator’s departure. Pham also posted on the social media site X on Wednesday that once Selig is sworn in, he expects “a smooth transition.”
“The future is bright,” he said.
The former Citigroup CEO has led an aggressive agenda pushing for cryptocurrency-friendly policy, which has come to a head with several new initiatives established in recent weeks, just as Selig’s Senate confirmation process progressed. He is expected to be approved as part of a massive package of nominees in a vote currently scheduled for Wednesday night.
Selig is an official at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, where he has helped with the agency’s work on crypto policy.
“Caroline is one of the most influential leaders in U.S. financial regulation and helping define the future of digital assets,” Ivan Soto-Wright, MoonPay co-founder and CEO, said in a statement that called her the “perfect leader to guide MoonPay through our next chapter of growth and compliance excellence.”
At the company, which also holds a New York BitLicense and handles cryptocurrency trading, payments and stablecoin infrastructure, Pham will oversee its regulatory policy and strategy in Washington. It is not directly regulated by the CFTC.
Read more: Most influential: Caroline Pham
