Bessent, seen as a leading candidate for Treasury Secretary, meets with Trump, sources say By Reuters

By Steve Holland, Alexandra Ulmer and Lawrence Delevingne

WEST PALM BEACH, Florida, SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -Prominent investor Scott Bessent met with Donald Trump on Friday as he and fellow investor John Paulson emerge as leading candidates for the fundamental role of U.S. Treasury Secretary, in response to 2 folks shut to the president-elect.

Bessent and Paulson are amongst several names which were reported in the media as doable candidates for the role in present days. A final resolution rests with Trump, and Reuters was once unable to learn whether others had been dominated out or had been serene in contention.

One of many 2 sources acknowledged Bessent’s meetings at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Florida property had been “very definite.”

Trump’s spokespeople did no longer retort to a predict for comment. Spokespeople for Bessent and Paulson declined to comment.

It was once unclear whether Paulson had met or had plans to fulfill with Trump.

Trump, who is situation to return to the White Dwelling on Jan. 20, has begun the strategy of picking a Cupboard and deciding on high-ranking administration officers.

The Treasury Secretary job is a key Cupboard plot, with broad have an effect on over economic, regulatory and worldwide affairs. Wall Boulevard has been closely gazing who Trump will decide, especially given his plans to remake world substitute thru tariffs.

Bessent and Paulson, both financial backers of Trump’s marketing campaign, fetch long been in Trump’s sights for this sort of job. All the device thru a January marketing campaign speech, Trump floated Paulson as a doable Treasury Secretary. A supply conscious of the topic at the time acknowledged Trump wished Paulson to handbook Treasury, and if no longer him, Bessent.

A longtime hedge fund investor who taught at Yale University for several years, Bessent has a warm relationship with the president-elect and has spoken extremely of Trump’s employ of tariffs as a negotiating device. Paulson, a billionaire investor and fundamental Trump donor, is a longtime proponent of tax cuts and deregulation.

Other names which were speculated about for the role are FOX Enterprise Community character Larry Kudlow, Trump’s vulnerable U.S. substitute handbook Robert Lighthizer and Howard Lutnick, the co-chair of Trump’s transition group.

Corporate approved legit Jay Clayton, vulnerable head of the U.S. Securities and Alternate Commission at some stage in Donald Trump’s presidency, is meanwhile in talks for several doable roles in a 2d Trump term, although is seen as much less most likely for Treasury Secretary.

JPMorgan Trip (NYSE:) CEO Jamie Dimon, who has also been speculated, has no plans to be a half of Donald Trump’s administration, a supply acknowledged earlier this week.

In response to online having a bet web website Polymarket, Bessent is the lead candidate for Treasury Secretary, with Paulson subsequent most likely and Clayton and Kudlow at smaller odds.

Trump on Thursday introduced that Susie Wiles, no doubt one of his two marketing campaign managers, will be his White Dwelling chief of workers, in what is anticipated to be a flurry of staffing announcements.