CREW requests records on communications between Secretary Lutnick’s and President Trump’s adult children and the mining industry

CREW is requesting records from the Department of Commerce, the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) on communications with Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick’s and President Donald Trump’s adult children and the companies in which they are invested. These records will also allow the public to assess whether Secretary Lutnick—who is also a board member of DFC and EXIM—used his offices to advance mining deals and increase his family’s wealth or whether his business interests have influenced the conduct of the Department of Commerce, DFC and EXIM.

Last year, Secretary Lutnick negotiated an agreement with the government of Kazakhstan to allow Cove Kaz Capital Group to mine the country’s tungsten reserves. Secretary Lutnick sent a letter to the Kazakh president urging him to accept the deal, and EXIM and DFC both issued letters of interest providing Cove Kaz with tentative financing for the project. At the same time that Secretary Lutnick was advocating for Cove Kaz, Lutnick’s and Trump’s sons were acquiring stakes in it. Cove Kaz ultimately won the tungsten mining contract, and Kazakhstan and Secretary Lutnick signed the agreement on November 6, 2025.  Both Cantor Fitzgerald and Dominari Securities—companies that the Lutnick and Trump sons also have ties to—earned fees for their role in raising the capital of Cove Kaz and are poised to profit from their ownership interest in the venture. The New York Times identified at least 14 mining companies working on “critical mining deals with the U.S. government” linked to either the Trump or Lutnick families. 

CREW is seeking records about communications between Commerce, DFC and EXIM personnel and Secretary Lutnick’s and Donald Trump’s adult children, the companies involved in the Kazakh mining deal, and the other 14 companies with reported ties to the Lutnick or Trump families. The public deserves to know whether Secretary Lutnick’s and his family’s personal interests have influenced his or the government’s conduct, what role Secretary Lutnick’s official position may have played in the conduct of such business and the extent to which Commerce, DFC and EXIM have taken any steps to mitigate the conflicts of interest posed by those ties.