(CNN) — Here’s a look at the life of hedge fund executive and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Personal
Birth date: August 21, 1962
Birth place: Conway, South Carolina
Birth name: Scott Kenneth Homer Bessent
Father: Homer Gaston Bessent Jr., real estate developer
Mother: Barbara McLeod Bessent
Marriage: John Freeman (2011-present)
Children: Cole and Caroline
Education: Yale University, B.A., 1984
Other Facts
Is the first openly gay Treasury secretary and the first openly LGBTQ Senate-confirmed Cabinet member in a Republican administration.
After graduating from Yale, Bessent held positions at Brown Brothers Harriman, Olayan Group and Kynikos Associates.
Timeline
1991-2000 – Managing partner of Soros Fund Management in London.
2000-2005 – Establishes and runs his own hedge fund, Bessent Capital.
2006-2010 – Adjunct professor at Yale University.
2007-2010 – Works at Protégé Partners, a New York-based investment firm.
2011-2015 – Chief investment officer for Soros Fund Management.
2015 – Founds the hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, where he serves as chief executive officer and chief investment officer.
November 22, 2024 – President-elect Donald Trump announces Bessent as his pick to serve as the next secretary of the Department of the Treasury.
January 27, 2025 – In a 68-29 vote, the Senate confirms Bessent as the Treasury secretary. He is sworn in the following day.
August 8, 2025 – According to two White House officials, Trump has ousted the current commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service and selected Bessent to serve as the acting head of the IRS while the administration seeks a more permanent replacement.
September 3, 2025 – Bessent threatens to punch Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte in the face during a dinner at Executive Club, an exclusive MAGA-aligned group started by some of Trump’s closest advisers, according to two sources familiar with the altercation.
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