Making Bank

Take care of business, he said:

Speaking at the Institute of International Finance during the spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank, Bessent said that “America First does not mean America alone.” He argued that the Trump administration is not looking to abandon international institutions or the global financial system built with American leadership, but rather is making a renewed commitment to U.S. leadership within it. “Far from stepping back, ‘America First’ seeks to expand U.S. leadership in international institutions like the IMF and World Bank,” Bessent said. The speech marked Bessent’s most comprehensive statement to date on the Trump administration’s global economic strategy, calling for a “rebalancing” of the international financial system that includes trade realignment, a reassessment of IMF and World Bank priorities, and a stronger role for the U.S. in shaping institutional governance. ‘Make the IMF the IMF Again’ Bessent called on global leaders to “make the IMF the IMF again,” singling out the IMF’s increased focus on climate change, gender equity, and social policy as distractions from its original purpose. “The IMF was once unwavering in its mission of promoting global monetary cooperation and financial stability,” he said. “Now it devotes disproportionate time and resources to work on climate change, gender, and social issues. These issues are not the IMF’s mission.”

The business of business is business...