Elected President of the United States, Donald Trump continues to appoint members of his government and has just awarded the US Treasury to Scott Bessent, a long-time supporter.
Donald Trump has made his choice: Scott Bessent, 62, is his new Treasury Secretary. Appointed on Friday November 22, the founder of the investment company Key Square Groupe takes on a key position, combining implementation of the president-elect's economic program and control of the public debt.
In a statement, Donald Trump welcomed his choice, assuring that Scott Bessent will help him “launch a new golden age for the United States, by solidifying our role as the world's leading economy, center of innovation and of business creation, destination of capital, while ensuring that the dollar remains, without question, the world's reserve currency.
Yale graduate
Originally from South Carolina and graduate of the prestigious Yale University, Scott Bessent spent a significant part of his career with Democratic financier George Soros. According to Forbes, he worked as investment director for Soros Fund Management between 1991 and 2000 and then from 2011 to 2015.
He subsequently launched his own investment fund: Key Square Group. Recently, Donald Trump described him as “one of the greatest analysts on Wall Street.”
A family friend
Friend of Donald Trump's late brother, Scott Bessent has known the Trump family for 30 years. He invested $3 million in the Republican's campaign and assured that he was “one of the few” to support him on Wall Street.
Speaking to Forbes, the new Treasury Secretary described the president-elect as “very sophisticated when it comes to economic policy” in comparison to Kamala Harris, whom he described as “economic illiterate.”
If his nomination is approved by the Senate, Scott Bessent will become the first openly gay minister in a Republican government. He is married and father of two children with his husband.
“Deregulation and tax reform”
As Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent will have a role in advising, managing the federal budget and overseeing economic policy. On November 10, just four days after the election of Donald Trump and even before his appointment, the new Secretary of the Treasury had already announced his economic priorities for the new administration in the columns of the Wall Street Journal.
According to him, “deregulation and tax reform” will be the subjects “essential to restart the engine of American growth, reduce inflationary pressures and reduce the debt burden”. One of his priorities is to extend the tax cuts made during Donald Trump's first term, “get rid of these failed green policies” and “adjust the budget deficit”.
He is also the architect of a plan intended to weaken the independence of the American central bank, the Federal Reserve or Fed, as Donald Trump wants. This raises and lowers interest rates according to developments in the American economy, to ensure price stability and full employment. She is firmly committed to her independence from the executive, but the Republican believes that he should have “his say” in the decisions of the institution.
Since the president himself appoints the governors of the Fed, Scott Bessent himself put on the table the hypothesis of a “shadow president”, whose presence would aim to ensure that the real president of the institution does not no longer have any influence. The latter, Jérôme Powell, assured that he would not leave his post before the end of his mandate, scheduled for May 2026.
