Trump expected to pick Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick as Commerce Secretary

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is expected to nominate a key transition adviser and billionaire CFO, Howard Lutnick, to lead the Commerce Department, according to two sources familiar with the process.

Cantor Fitzgerald’s CEO has led and been the public face of Trump’s transition.

It is not yet clear what his election to a ministerial position will mean for his role in the transition going forward.

As co-chairman of Trump’s transition, Lutnick has been an outspoken advocate of Trump’s agenda, including explaining how he plans to use tariffs once he’s in office. Lutnick is the CEO and chairman of financial services titan Cantor Fitzgerald. The Commerce Department will play a key role in implementing some of Trump’s proposed tariffs on goods imported into the United States.

Lutnick has been with Cantor Fitzgerald since 1983. The firm was headquartered in New York’s World Trade Center on 9/11, killing hundreds of employees

The announcement follows days of speculation over who might fill the remaining top posts in the incoming Trump administration, including Treasury Secretary Lutnick, who was considered a top candidate. Lutnick’s selection was first reported by Punchbowl News.

A transition official did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It remains to be seen who Trump will pick to lead the Treasury Department, a role for which Lutnick over the weekend drew public support from Elon Musk, the billionaire recently tapped to head a new ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ .

Musk has been an almost constant presence at Mar-a-Lago since the election, proving his closeness to Trump.