US President Donald Trump has introduced former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh as his choice for the next chairman of the US central bank. This move confirms the circulating rumors after the former Fed governor reportedly met with Trump at the White House on Thursday, January 29.
Trump is pushing Warsh to the Senate for the position of Fed chairman
On Friday, January 30, Trump via his social media platform Truth Social announced his appointment of former Fed official Kevin Warsh to succeed Jerome Powell as chairman of the Federal Reserve. Prior to this announcement, prediction platforms had heavily tipped Warsh as Trump’s likely choice.
Warsh served on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors from 2006 to 2011 and held senior positions at the White House National Economic Council during the administration of former President George Bush. The former Morgan Stanley banker was considered for the Fed chair position in 2017 before Powell was ultimately appointed.
Trump said in his announcement:
I have known Kevin for a long time and have no doubt that he will go down in history as one of the GREAT Fed Chairs, perhaps the best. Above all, he is central casting, and he will never let you down. Congratulations Kevin!
Warsh had been an outspoken critic of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy long before Powell became chairman. Unsurprisingly, his recent stance appears to be in line with Trump’s interest rate-cutting agenda. The former Wall Street executive said in an interview last July that President Trump was right to push the Fed to cut rates.
Trump’s nomination of Warsh as Fed chairman still needs to be confirmed by the US Senate, with many commentators expecting a battle between the executive branch and the legislative branch. While Trump is looking for a Fed chairman who listens to the White House, a tribute Powell has refused to pay, the Senate believes the Federal Reserve should function independently.
What does Warsh’s selection mean for Crypto?
Warsh and Powell appear to be on opposite sides of the divide when it comes to the cryptocurrency industry and Bitcoin. While the current chairman of the Federal Reserve has consistently downplayed BTC’s relevance in the broader US economy, Warsh is quite bullish on the world’s largest cryptocurrency.
In a recent talk hosted by the Hoover Institution, Warsh said Bitcoin is a major asset that doesn’t bother him, and he doesn’t view the currency as a replacement for the dollar. “Bitcoin can help inform policymakers when they are doing things right or wrong,” said the former Morgan Stanley banker.