{"id":6345,"date":"2026-02-05T06:45:33","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T06:45:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cryptonews.uk.com\/?p=6345"},"modified":"2026-02-05T06:45:33","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T06:45:33","slug":"treasury-secretary-bessent-questioned-over-trump-linked-crypto-firm-and-bitcoin-oversight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cryptonews.uk.com\/?p=6345","title":{"rendered":"Treasury Secretary Bessent Questioned Over Trump-Linked Crypto Firm and Bitcoin Oversight"},"content":{"rendered":"

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  • House lawmakers confronted Scott Bessent over Treasury oversight and conflicts linked to a Trump-backed crypto firm.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Democrats called for a pause on WLFI\u2019s bank charter following revelations of a major foreign stake.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Bessent rejected claims the Treasury can support Bitcoin markets or deploy taxpayer funds.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent faced heated questioning during a House Financial Services Committee hearing focused on the Treasury Department\u2019s oversight responsibilities and its role within the Financial Stability Oversight Council.<\/p>\n

    Democratic lawmakers concentrated their scrutiny on World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a decentralised finance venture linked to President Donald Trump, and recent disclosures concerning foreign investment in the firm.<\/p>\n

    Representative Gregory Meeks highlighted reports that an Emirati-backed investment vehicle secretly acquired a 49% stake in WLFI for US$500 million (AU$720 million) shortly before Trump\u2019s inauguration. Meeks urged Bessent to halt any bank charter applications associated with the company while potential conflicts of interest are reviewed, noting that WLFI has submitted an application to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.\u00a0<\/p>\n

    Bessent responded that the OCC operates independently from the Treasury, declining to say whether he would intervene or initiate a review of the firm. The exchange escalated into a shouting match, with Meeks accusing the Treasury Secretary of shielding the president from accountability.<\/p>\n

    Related: Australian Influencer Promoted Illegal Crypto Gambling<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Lawmakers challenge limits of Bitcoin oversight<\/h2>\n

    Lawmakers also pressed Bessent on the Treasury\u2019s authority over Bitcoin and the administration\u2019s recently established strategic Bitcoin reserve. Bessent confirmed that the reserve is composed of Bitcoin seized through criminal and civil forfeiture proceedings and stated that the government is not authorised to purchase Bitcoin using taxpayer funds.\u00a0<\/p>\n

    He said US$500 million (AU$720 million) in retained seized Bitcoin has since increased in value to more than US$15 billion (AU$21.6 billion). Bessent further denied having any authority to instruct banks to buy Bitcoin or to \u201cbail out\u201d the cryptocurrency market.<\/p>\n

    Related: Michael Burry Warns Bitcoin Breakdown Could Trigger \u201cSickening\u201d Cascade<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

    Bitcoin,Law,World Liberty Financial#Treasury #Secretary #Bessent #Questioned #TrumpLinked #Crypto #Firm #Bitcoin #Oversight1770273933<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    House lawmakers confronted Scott Bessent over Treasury oversight and conflicts linked to a Trump-backed crypto firm. Democrats called for a pause on WLFI\u2019s bank charter following revelations of a major foreign stake. Bessent rejected claims the Treasury can support Bitcoin markets or deploy taxpayer funds. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent faced heated questioning during a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6346,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[2208,91,62,2096,1738,2209,2207,585,1175],"class_list":{"0":"post-6345","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bitcoin","8":"tag-bessent","9":"tag-bitcoin","10":"tag-crypto","11":"tag-firm","12":"tag-oversight","13":"tag-questioned","14":"tag-secretary","15":"tag-treasury","16":"tag-trumplinked"},"yoast_head":"\nTreasury Secretary Bessent Questioned Over Trump-Linked Crypto Firm and Bitcoin Oversight - Crypto News: Latest Cryptocurrency News and Analysis<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cryptonews.uk.com\/?p=6345\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Treasury Secretary Bessent Questioned Over Trump-Linked Crypto Firm and Bitcoin Oversight\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"House lawmakers confronted Scott Bessent over Treasury oversight and conflicts linked to a Trump-backed crypto firm. 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