By Alexandra Alper
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Investment banker Howard Lutnick’s exposure to China came into sharp relief on Wednesday, after Republican President-elect Donald Trump tapped him to lead the agencies that have become the tip of the spear in the U.S.-China trade war.
The financial services firms helmed by Lutnick have profited from ties to China, from BGC Group, which has a joint venture in Beijing with Chinese-state owned China Credit Trust, to Cantor Fitzgerald, which has helped take Chinese firms public in the United States.
The financial ties raise questions about whether Lutnick could be unduly influenced by Beijing when making decisions about whether to impose fresh tariffs and export curbs on China as United States Trade Representative and Commerce Secretary, lawmakers and ethics experts said.
“Mr. Lutnick’s conflicts of interest in China appear to be substantial. How can the American people expect someone who is on the Chinese government’s payroll to help level the playing field with China for working Americans?” asked Democratic Senator Ron Wyden, who chairs the Senate finance committee.
Cantor Fitzgerald, BGC group, and the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Democratic Senator Tim Kaine, who serves on the foreign relations and armed services committees, said he expects Lutnick “will be pressed about his financial connections to U.S. adversaries. It’s crucial that our Commerce Secretary’s top priority be the American people, not their personal business dealings.”
Lutnick’s financial services firm BGC Group has a 33% stake, valued at nearly $28 million, in a joint venture with China Credit Trust, whose largest shareholder is state-owned China People’s Insurance Company, according to the joint venture’s website.
“In 2023, China Credit Trust will actively practise the mission and responsibility of a financial state-owned enterprise,” the website says.
The joint venture, known as China Credit BGC Money Broking Company Limited, was licensed to operate in Beijing in 2010, as the first currency brokerage company there, according to the website, and provides brokerage and data services for domestic and foreign exchange markets as well as money, bond and derivatives markets.
The tie-up, according to a BGC press release, marked “the first Sino-foreign joint venture inter-dealer broking company to have been granted a business license by the China Banking Regulatory Commission to operate in Beijing.”
‘BUSINESS PARTNERS’