Kevin Hassett is emerging as the most important name in global finance.The 63-year-old economist — currently chief of the National Economic Council — is widely expected to become the next chair of the US Federal Reserve after President Donald Trump said he has already chosen his candidate and will announce the pick early next year.On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump called Hassett a “potential Fed chair” and said the shortlist was down to one, The New York Times reported on Wednesday. ‘He can take strong, coherent economics and translate it into Trumpian gobbledygook.’Mark Spindel, chief investment officer at Potomac River CapitalThe statement builds on Trump’s weekend remarks on Air Force One, where he said his mind has already been made up. Prediction market Kalshi now gives Hassett 74% odds of winning the job, with banker Kevin Warsh far behind at 14%. If that holds, markets will all be dealing with a Fed boss seen as more politically aligned with a president than any in modern history. When asked by Fox Business if he would serve as Fed chair in November, Hasset replied: “Yes, I serve the president. That’s what I do.”Bigger, faster cutsHassett’s speedy rise matters because he is one of the few Fed contenders who has zealously argued for faster and bigger cuts to interest rates, which Trump has demanded for months. If confirmed, he takes charge at a time when crypto and other risk assets like tech stocks are tightly bound to liquidity. Fed chairs have historically been free of political pressure from the White House, and have a dual mandate to ensure maximum employment rates and price stability. A more dovish Fed led by Hasset would inject more money into the financial system and push risk asset valuations higher by disincentivising investors from holding bonds.But some see that as a risk to price stability through inflation. Jerome Powell, the current Fed chair, finishes his turbulent eight-year term in May 2026. Much of his time on the Fed throne was spent clashing with Trump on interest rate policy. Fluent ‘Trumpian gobbledygook’Hassett is Trump’s longest-serving policy adviser still in government, running the National Economic Council from the West Wing and effectively acting as the president’s in-house strategist on trade, tariffs and monetary policy.The National Economic Council is responsible for coordinating domestic and international economic policy matters between top officials. During Trump’s first term, Hassett chaired the Council of Economic Advisers, and during the pandemic, as a crisis adviser and was later brought back again to help tighten policies.“He possesses a unique ability to simultaneously translate in both directions — Trumpian gobbledygook into strong, coherent economics,” Mark Spindel, chief investment officer at Potomac River Capital, told The New York Times. “He can take strong, coherent economics and translate it into Trumpian gobbledygook.”Beyond his close ties to the president, Hassett also has an extensive and conventional pedigree. He spent two decades at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, advised multiple Republican presidential campaigns, and worked earlier in his career at Columbia Business School and the Fed’s own research division.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has finished the interview process and is expected to officially deliver his recommendation soon. Trump is expected to announce his pick in early 2026.Lance Datskoluo is DL News’ Europe-based markets correspondent. Got a tip? Email him at [email protected].Kevin Hassett is emerging as the most important name in global finance.The 63-year-old economist — currently chief of the National Economic Council — is widely expected to become the next chair of the US Federal Reserve after President Donald Trump said he has already chosen his candidate and will announce the pick early next year.On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump called Hassett a “potential Fed chair” and said the shortlist was down to one, The New York Times reported on Wednesday. ‘He can take strong, coherent economics and translate it into Trumpian gobbledygook.’Mark Spindel, chief investment officer at Potomac River CapitalThe statement builds on Trump’s weekend remarks on Air Force One, where he said his mind has already been made up. Prediction market Kalshi now gives Hassett 74% odds of winning the job, with banker Kevin Warsh far behind at 14%. If that holds, markets will all be dealing with a Fed boss seen as more politically aligned with a president than any in modern history. When asked by Fox Business if he would serve as Fed chair in November, Hasset replied: “Yes, I serve the president. That’s what I do.”Bigger, faster cutsHassett’s speedy rise matters because he is one of the few Fed contenders who has zealously argued for faster and bigger cuts to interest rates, which Trump has demanded for months. If confirmed, he takes charge at a time when crypto and other risk assets like tech stocks are tightly bound to liquidity. Fed chairs have historically been free of political pressure from the White House, and have a dual mandate to ensure maximum employment rates and price stability. A more dovish Fed led by Hasset would inject more money into the financial system and push risk asset valuations higher by disincentivising investors from holding bonds.But some see that as a risk to price stability through inflation. Jerome Powell, the current Fed chair, finishes his turbulent eight-year term in May 2026. Much of his time on the Fed throne was spent clashing with Trump on interest rate policy. Fluent ‘Trumpian gobbledygook’Hassett is Trump’s longest-serving policy adviser still in government, running the National Economic Council from the West Wing and effectively acting as the president’s in-house strategist on trade, tariffs and monetary policy.The National Economic Council is responsible for coordinating domestic and international economic policy matters between top officials. During Trump’s first term, Hassett chaired the Council of Economic Advisers, and during the pandemic, as a crisis adviser and was later brought back again to help tighten policies.“He possesses a unique ability to simultaneously translate in both directions — Trumpian gobbledygook into strong, coherent economics,” Mark Spindel, chief investment officer at Potomac River Capital, told The New York Times. “He can take strong, coherent economics and translate it into Trumpian gobbledygook.”Beyond his close ties to the president, Hassett also has an extensive and conventional pedigree. He spent two decades at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, advised multiple Republican presidential campaigns, and worked earlier in his career at Columbia Business School and the Fed’s own research division.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has finished the interview process and is expected to officially deliver his recommendation soon. Trump is expected to announce his pick in early 2026.Lance Datskoluo is DL News’ Europe-based markets correspondent. Got a tip? Email him at [email protected].

                                                                               Legal experts are concerned that transforming ESMA into the “European SEC” may hinder the licensing of crypto and fintech in the region.                     The European Commission’s proposal to expand the powers of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is raising concerns about the centralization of the bloc’s licensing regime, despite signaling deeper institutional ambitions for its capital markets structure.On Thursday, the Commission published a package proposing to “direct supervisory competences” for key pieces of market infrastructure, including crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), trading venues and central counterparties to ESMA, Cointelegraph reported.Concerningly, the ESMA’s jurisdiction would extend to both the supervision and licensing of all European crypto and financial technology (fintech) firms, potentially leading to slower licensing regimes and hindering startup development, according to Faustine Fleuret, head of public affairs at decentralized lending protocol Morpho.Read more