December 19, 2025
Former Willkie partner Michael (Mike) Selig has been confirmed by the United States Senate as the sixteenth Chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). He succeeds Caroline Pham, who was designated Acting CFTC Chairman in January 2025.
Selig served as a partner at Willkie from 2022-2025 where he was a member of the Asset Management Department and Willkie Digital Works Practice, focusing on the intersection of financial regulations and crypto technologies. After leaving Willkie in March 2025, he has served as the Chief Counsel of the SEC’s Crypto Task Force. Earlier in his career, Mike worked as a law clerk for then-CFTC Commissioner J. Christopher Giancarlo, who went on to serve as CFTC Chairman, and is currently senior counsel at Willkie and Co-Chair of the Willkie Digital Works Practice.
Chris Giancarlo commented: “I’ve known Mike Selig for over a decade having worked with him at the CFTC and here at Willkie. Mike’s a tremendous lawyer, especially in matters of CFTC law and practice, including digital assets where his understanding of distributed ledger technology is unparalleled. Mike will bring balance and steadiness to his CFTC administration, while continuing the agency’s sound market supervision and proud tradition of cutting-edge innovation. Mike will be a great leader for this new era of digital market finance.”
The Willkie Digital Works team offers deep experience in the digital assets regulatory, policymaking and enforcement arenas. Representing both startups and established institutions, we offer a sophisticated understanding and guide our clients on the treatment of digital assets under securities and commodities laws and regulations; banking and Treasury laws and regulations; AML/KYC law; and state law matters. Our knowledge of the law and regulations is paired with our commitment to understand and support our clients’ unique business approaches in the digital asset world. We serve as a business-minded legal adviser to facilitate and foster the growth of our clients’ businesses in a regulatory compliant manner.
Selig served as a partner at Willkie from 2022-2025 where he was a member of the Asset Management Department and Willkie Digital Works Practice, focusing on the intersection of financial regulations and crypto technologies. After leaving Willkie in March 2025, he has served as the Chief Counsel of the SEC’s Crypto Task Force. Earlier in his career, Mike worked as a law clerk for then-CFTC Commissioner J. Christopher Giancarlo, who went on to serve as CFTC Chairman, and is currently senior counsel at Willkie and Co-Chair of the Willkie Digital Works Practice.
Chris Giancarlo commented: “I’ve known Mike Selig for over a decade having worked with him at the CFTC and here at Willkie. Mike’s a tremendous lawyer, especially in matters of CFTC law and practice, including digital assets where his understanding of distributed ledger technology is unparalleled. Mike will bring balance and steadiness to his CFTC administration, while continuing the agency’s sound market supervision and proud tradition of cutting-edge innovation. Mike will be a great leader for this new era of digital market finance.”
The Willkie Digital Works team offers deep experience in the digital assets regulatory, policymaking and enforcement arenas. Representing both startups and established institutions, we offer a sophisticated understanding and guide our clients on the treatment of digital assets under securities and commodities laws and regulations; banking and Treasury laws and regulations; AML/KYC law; and state law matters. Our knowledge of the law and regulations is paired with our commitment to understand and support our clients’ unique business approaches in the digital asset world. We serve as a business-minded legal adviser to facilitate and foster the growth of our clients’ businesses in a regulatory compliant manner.
