Bessent will lead President-elect Donald Trump’s Treasury Department. Bessent is the first out gay member of Trump’s Cabinet.

Key Takeaways Scott Bessent, Donald Trump's pick for Treasury Secretary, was an economic advisor during his campaign and championed an agenda of tariffs, lower taxes, and deregulation.Bessent is a hedge fund manager who previously worked for liberal billionaire George Soros.

The hedge fund manager will be responsible for steering President-elect Donald J. Trump’s unconventional economic agenda.

President-elect Trump selected billionaire investor Scott Bessent to lead the Treasury Department on Friday as the former president continues to call for an increase in tariffs and major shifts in the country’s global trade operations.

Wall Street analysts believe Bessent will encourage Trump to roll back his aggressive plans for imposing tariffs on imported goods.

Not surprisingly, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., a member of the Senate Finance Committee as well as the Senate Banking Committee, commended his fellow South Carolinian, in a news release, saying Bessent will “usher in a tax code that enhances growth, investment and economic opportunity for all Americans.”

Trump's nominee to run the Treasury faces a tall order—dealing with mounting debt, implementing an aggressive tariff regime, and navigating a thorny relationship with the Federal Reserve.

Bessent spent his career in finance and gives Wall Street an advocate for tax reform and deregulation. Some call his nomination a 'relief' and say it could reduce the chance of severe tariffs.

Hedge fund executive Bessent will be Trump’s primary conduit to Wall Street investors who are skeptical of the president-elect's punishing trade agenda.