Trump nominates hedge fund manager Scott Bessent as Treasury secretary

President-elect Donald Trump has tapped Scott Bessent to lead the U.S. Secretary of Treasury.

"Scott is widely respected as one of the World's foremost International Investors and Geopolitical and Economic Strategists. Scott's story is that of the American Dream," Trump said in his statement, which was shared on his Truth Social platform.

Bessent, 62, cofounded Key Square Capital Management in 2015. He previously spent a majority of his career at George Soros' Soros Capital Management, where he served as chief investment officer from 2011 to 2015.

Bessent had been a major fundraiser for the Trump campaign, and if his nomination is confirmed by the U.S. Senate, he would be the first openly gay secretary of the Treasury.

Bessent spoke positively about the crypto industry earlier this year.

"I have been excited about the president’s embrace of crypto and I think it fits very well with the Republican Party," Bessent told Fox Business in July. "Crypto is about freedom in the crypto economy is here to stay, the Democrats are running from it because they are trying to wash off the stench of Sam Bankman-Fried and his family donations to the Democratic party."

Bessent said "everything is on the table with Bitcoin" and that one of the most exciting things about Bitcoin is how it is bringing young investors into the market in the aftermath of the 2007-2009 financial crisis.

Trump became a crypto advocate in 2024 and he's even met with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong to discuss “personnel appointments,” according to The Wall Street Journal.

Crypto-friendly Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been nominated for U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, while Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth has expressed support for the crypto industry.

Trump is expected to tap bitcoin-backer and Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick to lead the Commerce Department, according to multiple reports, and is preparing to name former Bakkt CEO Kelly Loeffler to lead the Agriculture Department.

The president-elect has also established the Department of Government Efficiency ("DOGE"), led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, which will "dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies."