Trump picks Bessent to be U.S. treasury secretary

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Friday named billionaire Scott Bessent as his Treasury secretary, choosing the hedge fund manager to help execute an agenda promising tax cuts and tariffs. 

Bessent, who is chief executive officer of Key Square Group, has called for an extension of tax cuts from Trump's first term, wants to reassert American energy dominance and believes it is necessary to deal with the budget deficit. 

"Scott is widely respected as one of the world's foremost international investors and geopolitical and economic strategists," Trump said in a statement. 

"He will help me usher in a new Golden Age for the United States, as we fortify our position as the world's leading economy," he said, adding Bessent would also help "reinvigorate the private sector, and help curb the unsustainable path of federal debt."