Bessent Names Fed Chair Finalists Ahead of Year End Decision

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday confirmed the names of five finalists to succeed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, with the president saying he expected to make his decision by year-end.

The candidate pool has narrowed to current Fed board members Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett and BlackRock Inc. executive Rick Rieder, Bessent told reporters Monday on Air Force One.

Bessent, who is leading interviews for the position, reiterated that he’s planning to do a further round of interviews, and hopes to present a “good slate” to President Donald Trump after the Thanksgiving holiday. Bloomberg's Michael McKee joined Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec on 'Bloomberg Businessweek Daily' to break the list down.

Trump himself told reporters that he expected to make a decision on the nominee before the end of the year.

“We have a person who is not at all smart right now,” Trump told reporters, reprising his regular criticism of Powell, whom he’s charged with holding back the economy by failing to slash interest rates.

Fed policymakers are widely expected to lower rates at their two-day policy meeting concluding Oct. 29, by 25 basis points. That would be the second such move in a row. Before policymakers resumed cutting their benchmark, Trump had said he wanted the central bank to reduce rates by three percentage points.

The president also on Monday reiterated that he didn’t expect Bessent to leave his current post to helm the Fed.

The next chair is likely to be named to a 14-year Fed governor term that opens on Feb. 1. The term that expires at that time is currently held by Stephen Miran, who is on unpaid leave from his post as chair of the White House Council of Economic advisers.

That person will also have to be confirmed by the Senate and will face public scrutiny from lawmakers on their views on the economy, monetary policy and the independence of the central bank.

The next chair will have to maintain a careful balancing act, both appealing to Trump’s desire for lower interest rates, while also maintaining investors’ confidence.

Powell’s term as chair concludes in May, but his underlying term as a governor continues into early 2028. He has not indicated whether he will leave the Fed when his time at the helm expires. If he were to remain, he could represent a rival to the new chair in providing leadership to the Fed’s rate-setting panel, the Federal Open Market Committee.

The FOMC continues to wrestle with conflicting pressures on the US economy. Hiring slowed dramatically this summer causing many policymakers to worry that could trigger a sharp rise in unemployment. Officials responded by lowering rates by a quarter percentage point in September, and are likely to do so again this week.

Still, a large minority of the FOMC remains deeply concerned that inflation continues to run almost a percentage point above the Fed’s 2% target. They also point to signs of strong growth in the third quarter as another reason to be cautious about lowering rates too far.

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