Scott Bessent is the hedge fund billionaire who in November Donald Trump nominated for the top job at the US Treasury department, responsible for enacting the president-elect’s pledges to cut taxes and raise tariffs.
Bessent, who runs Key Square Capital Management, is regarded across Wall Street and Washington as a pragmatic pick for such a high-profile job.
The battle for the post pitted Bessent against fellow billionaire investors Howard Lutnick and Apollo’s Marc Rowan, as well as former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh and Tennessee Senator Bill Hagerty.
Trump, at the time of Bessent’s nomination, described him as “one of the world’s foremost international investors and geopolitical and economic strategists”, who was “widely respected”.
Considered an expert in financial turmoil, Bessent’s hedge fund in 2022 was successful with a bet against the Federal Reserve that US inflation would prove longer lasting than forecast.
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