Scott Bessent

RepublicanSecretary of the Treasury

Age	63 (b. 1962-08-21)
Gender	Male
In office since	2025-01-20 (~1 yrs)
Race / ethnicity	White (French and Scottish descent)
Religion	Huguenot (French Protestant)
Education	B.A. in Political Science, Yale University (1984); adjunct professor of economic history at Yale (2006–2011)
Prior occupation	Hedge fund manager and investor; founder of Key Square Group (2015); Chief Investment Officer at Soros Fund Management (2011–2015); founder of Bessent Capital (2000–2005); partner at Soros Fund Management (1991–2000); positions at Kynikos Associates, Brown Brothers Harriman, and Olayan Group; adjunct professor of economic history at Yale (2006–2011)
Military service	No
Birthplace	Conway, South Carolina
Marital status	married — John Freeman
Children	2
Residence	Washington, D.C. (primary while serving); Charleston, South Carolina
Notable relatives	Uncle: John Jenrette, former U.S. Representative (D-SC, convicted in Abscam scandal 1980); Cousin: Richard Jenrette, co-founder of investment bank Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette
Openly LGBTQ	yes

Wikipedia

Pending research: languages.

Career & politics

Previous offices	Acting Director, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (February 3–7, 2025) · Acting IRS Commissioner (August 8, 2025 – March 2026)
Leadership	79th U.S. Secretary of the Treasury (January 28, 2025–present)
Party history	Historically donated to Democrats including Al Gore, Barack Obama, John Kerry, and Hillary Clinton; shifted to exclusively Republican donations after 2015 departure from Soros Fund Management; donated $1M to Trump's 2017 inaugural committee; became major Republican fundraiser by 2024. Of approximately $15 million in total political donations, all but roughly $300,000 has gone to Republicans.
Ideology	Fiscally conservative, pro-tariff, strong dollar advocate; supports tax cuts, deregulation, and cryptocurrency; opposes CBDCs and federal minimum wage increases; hawks on China and Russia; author of '3-3-3' economic plan (3% deficit/GDP, 3% GDP growth, +3M barrels/day energy output)

Financial

Net worth: disclosed $521,000,000–$784,000,000 (2025) · estimate

SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)	fund · $50,000,000 · 2025
Invesco QQQ (Nasdaq 100 ETF)	fund · $50,000,000 · 2025
Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP)	fund · $50,000,000 · 2025
U.S. Treasury Bills	other · $50,000,000 · 2025
Currency positions (USD/CNH, EUR/USD, USD/JPY)	other · $50,000,000 · 2025
Key Square Group LP	business_owned · $50,000,000 · 2025
Residential property, Nassau, Bahamas	real_estate · $5,000,000–$25,000,000 · 2025
Residential property, Cashiers, NC	real_estate · $5,000,000–$25,000,000 · 2025
High Plains LLP (North Dakota farmland, five counties)	real_estate · $5,000,000–$25,000,000 · 2025
Commercial real estate, Charleston, SC	real_estate · $1,000,000–$5,000,000 · 2025
Art and antiques	other · $1,000,000–$5,000,000 · 2025
iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT)	fund · $250,001–$500,000 · 2025

Scandals & crimes ledger

resolved — OGE Finding of Non-Compliance with Ethics Divestiture Agreement

ethics-violation · 2025-08-11 · As a condition of his January 2025 confirmation as Treasury Secretary, Bessent signed a federal ethics agreement pledging to divest roughly two dozen financial holdings — including a stake in Key Square Group and North Dakota farmland held through High Plains LLP/High Plains Acres LLP — within 90 days of taking office. In an August 11, 2025 letter to the Senate Finance Committee, U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) Deputy Director for Compliance Dale Christopher stated that Bessent "has failed to timely comply with certain terms of the ethics agreement he signed," and OGE directed Treasury ethics officials to remind Bessent of his personal responsibility to avoid conflicts of interest tied to his remaining holdings, including farmland whose value could be affected by his tariff and China trade decisions (soybean and corn markets). Treasury and OGE subsequently agreed to a further extension, with Bessent committing to complete the outstanding divestitures by December 15, 2025. · Bessent completed the remaining divestitures, including the sale of his North Dakota farmland holdings (announced around December 7, 2025), meeting the extended deadline. No fine, censure, or further formal sanction was imposed by OGE; Bessent remained in office throughout and continued as Treasury Secretary. Ethics watchdog groups (Campaign Legal Center, Democracy Defenders Fund) separately petitioned OGE and the Treasury Inspector General in 2025-2026 for a fuller investigation into the delay and related conflicts, but no additional formal OGE finding beyond the August 2025 compliance letter has been reported.

The U.S. Office of Government Ethics formally notified Congress in August 2025 that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had failed to timely comply with the divestiture terms of the ethics agreement he signed before taking office; Bessent and OGE agreed to an extended deadline, and Bessent completed the outstanding divestitures (including North Dakota farmland) by December 2025 without further sanction.

Sources: U.S. Office of Government Ethics · Bloomberg Law · CNBC · Campaign Legal Center · Banking Dive