Bessent Announces $20B Argentina Bailout for Trump Ally Milei, Enriching Connected Billionaire

| Importance: 8/10

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a $20 billion rescue package for Argentina’s president Javier Milei, including currency swap agreements, direct peso purchases (only the fourth time since 1996 the U.S. bought another country’s currency), and Treasury bond purchases. The bailout came one day after Trump met Milei at the UN General Assembly, where Trump pledged to ‘help’ Argentina while claiming it didn’t need a bailout. The arrangement massively enriched billionaire hedge fund manager Rob Citrone, a friend and former colleague of Bessent who had placed large bets on Argentina’s economy. Trump provided billions in taxpayer funds to prop up a foreign political ally while cutting domestic programs, exemplifying how personal loyalties and connected financiers dictate foreign policy and Treasury decisions.

Key Actors

Scott Bessent Donald Trump Javier Milei Rob Citrone Treasury Department

Tags

corruption conflicts-of-interest foreign-policy cronyism financial-fraud

Sources (2)

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