In November 2024, Donald Trump nominated Scott Bessent as his pick for Secretary of the Treasury. In his announcement, Trump praised Bessent—a financial advisor and major donor to his 2024 campaign—as “widely respected as one of the world’s foremost international investors and geopolitical and economic strategists.”
Trump described 63-year-old Bessent’s rise as “the American dream” and emphasized his strong support for the America First agenda. On the eve of the United States’ 250th anniversary, Trump said Bessent would help usher in a new era, strengthening the country’s global economic standing and preserving the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency.
Concluding his remarks, Trump declared that together, he and Bessent would “make America rich again, prosperous again, affordable again, and, most importantly, great again.”
Bessent was confirmed by the Senate on January 27, 2025, in a 68–29 vote and was sworn in shortly after as the 79th Secretary of the Treasury.
Find out more about Bessent’s financial standing and career below.
What Is Bessent’s Net Worth?
As of January 2025, Bessent’s net worth is $700 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
A financial disclosure filed with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics on December 28, 2024, listed his net worth at a minimum of $521 million.
How Did Bessent Make His Money?
Bessent is the founder of the macro investment firm Key Square Group.
A native of South Carolina, Bessent earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Yale University in 1984 before beginning his career in finance. In 1991, he joined Soros Fund Management (SFM), where he became a partner throughout the 1990s and later served as head of the London office. Bessent gained widespread recognition for betting against the British pound, a move that earned SFM $1 billion. (He repeated this success in 2013 by betting against the Japanese yen, bringing in additional profits.)
After resigning from SFM in 2000, Bessent founded a $1 billion hedge fund, which closed in 2005. He then served as a senior investment advisor at Protégé Partners, a fund-of-funds firm. Bessent returned to SFM in 2011 as chief investment officer, a role he held until 2015. He left in 2015 to establish his own firm, Key Square Group. Bessent announced that he would sever ties with the group as Treasury Secretary.
Is Bessent Married?
Bessent is married to former NYC prosecutor John Freeman, and the two have two children together.
He is the first openly gay Secretary of the Treasury and the second openly gay Cabinet Secretary, following Pete Buttigieg.