Key Takeaways
- • Senator Richard Blumenthal is investigating multi-million-dollar consulting payments from Tether to Nxum Group, a firm founded by former White House crypto adviser Bo Hines.
- • The payments were made while Hines was still advising the White House on crypto policy and now leads Tether's U.S. business, raising potential legal and ethical concerns about his dual role.
- • Blumenthal has sent letters to both Tether and Nxum Group requesting disclosure of their business arrangements; Tether had not yet commented at the time of reporting.
- • The story is a Pluang-republished item, with the accompanying market snapshot showing 37 of 50 major cryptocurrencies rising and 11 falling as of Oct 23, 2026.
Summary
Senator Richard Blumenthal is probing millions of dollars in consulting payments made by Tether, the stablecoin issuer, to Nxum Group, a consulting firm founded by Bo Hines, the former White House crypto adviser. According to the original report, the payments were made while Hines was still advising the White House on cryptocurrency policy. Hines now leads Tether's U.S. business.
Blumenthal has raised concerns that Hines' simultaneous role in shaping stablecoin policy and receiving payments from Tether may give rise to legal and ethical issues. To pursue the matter, he has sent letters to both Tether and Nxum Group requesting disclosure of the terms and nature of their business arrangements. As of the report, Tether had not publicly responded to the inquiry.
The article was republished by Pluang alongside its daily cryptocurrency market snapshot for Oct 23, 2026 at 23:21 WIB. That snapshot showed 37 of 50 major cryptocurrencies rising and 11 falling, with Balancer (BAL) up 11.14% at Rp16.297, EOS (EOS.IO) up 8.13% at Rp12.649, and COTI up 7.69% at Rp210. These figures are market context and are not connected to the investigation itself.
Blumenthal has raised concerns that Hines' simultaneous role in shaping stablecoin policy and receiving payments from Tether may give rise to legal and ethical issues. To pursue the matter, he has sent letters to both Tether and Nxum Group requesting disclosure of the terms and nature of their business arrangements. As of the report, Tether had not publicly responded to the inquiry.
The article was republished by Pluang alongside its daily cryptocurrency market snapshot for Oct 23, 2026 at 23:21 WIB. That snapshot showed 37 of 50 major cryptocurrencies rising and 11 falling, with Balancer (BAL) up 11.14% at Rp16.297, EOS (EOS.IO) up 8.13% at Rp12.649, and COTI up 7.69% at Rp210. These figures are market context and are not connected to the investigation itself.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.