Trump’s Treasury Department selected Scott Besent to liquidate Bitcoin ETF holdings to eliminate conflicts of interest

Billionaire hedge fund manager Scott Bescent, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Treasury Secretary, plans to divest several assets, including investments in exchange-traded funds (ETFs), to avoid a potential conflict of interest with his new role. According to a report issued by New York Times.

On Saturday, Besant, who previously worked for liberal billionaire George Soros, submitted an ethics and financial disclosure agreement as required for his impending Senate confirmation, disclosing assets and investments worth more than $700 million. This number includes BTC ETF holdings worth between $250,000 and $500,000, according to Media reports.

Other major investments that pose a potential conflict of interest include a margin loan of more than $50 million from Goldman Sachs, a Chinese currency trading account and a stake in the conservative publishing company All Seasons.

In a letter to the Ethics Office, Bessent promised to “avoid any actual or apparent conflicts of interest should I be confirmed as Treasury Secretary.”

If confirmed, pro-crypto Bessent will face the difficult task of managing burgeoning federal debt amid Trump’s plans to extend expiring tax cuts and eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits.

Besant is an advocate of tax reform and deregulation, especially to boost bank lending and energy production. In October of last year, Besant said The new Trump administration will likely seek to strengthen the dollar in line with Washington’s decades-long policy.