Bessent Brings Dollar Flex to Stablecoin Stage, Mideast Exit Cued 🎤

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the U.S. economy on Monday by pointing to the dollar's role in 89.2% of foreign-exchange transactions, the dominance of dollar-pegged stablecoins and a slate of strong income and employment data, seeking to counter recent concerns about surging government debt and shifting payment rails. The pushback came in response to a New York Times report outlining structural risks in the country's financial position, and Bessent amplified commentary from conservative analyst Lawrence Kudlow on X to underscore the greenback's global standing.

Citing figures highlighted by Kudlow, Bessent noted record median household income, a historically low official poverty rate, continued employment growth and the Atlanta Fed's 5.1% annualized estimate for third-quarter GDP. The comments arrived as U.S. Treasury yields climbed to multiyear highs, with the 10-year yield hitting 5%. The Treasury has been repurchasing longer-dated bonds, drawing criticism that the operation is aimed at suppressing yields. Bessent rejected that interpretation, stating the buybacks are intended to improve liquidity and manage the maturity structure of a Treasury market worth more than $30 trillion rather than control its price.

Bessent also cited Saudi Arabia's departure from mBridge, the China-backed cross-border digital currency platform, as evidence supportive of dollar dominance, referencing reporting by the Financial Times. Saudi officials said the kingdom's involvement ended after completing a planned proof of concept in May 2025, and the platform continues to expand with other participants, framing the exit as a symbolic win for Washington rather than a collapse of the broader project.

Taken together, the remarks reflect an effort by the Treasury to anchor the administration's economic narrative around the persistence of dollar-based trade and the rapid uptake of stablecoins, even as borrowing costs climb and digital-currency experiments advance abroad. Bessent's public defense follows weeks of market focus on the $30 trillion Treasury market, foreign demand for American assets and the competitive landscape for cross-border settlement infrastructure.