Feb. 3 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Monday designated Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent with additional duties as acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau after firing Rohit Chopa on Saturday.
Bessent, a billionaire hedge fund investor, was confirmed to the top post in the Treasury Department seven days ago.
Bessent, 62, is the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management and previously served as chief investment officer at Soros Fund Management, which was started by Democratic donor George Soros.
“I look forward to working with the CFPB to advance President Trump’s agenda to lower costs for the American people and accelerate economic growth,” Bessent said in a statement.
Trump did not nominate a permanent leader.
The Federal Vacancies Reform Act authorizes the president to appoint as an acting director of a federal agency with someone who has already been confirmed by the Senate for a position in another agency.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau implements and enforces federal consumer financial law and ensures “markets for consumer financial products are fair, transparent and competitive,” according to the agency.
Chopra, a Democrat, was appointed by former President Joe Biden in 2021 for a five-year term. Trump had picked Chopra as a Democratic member of the Federal Trade Commission in 2018.
Chopra often drew the ire of the U.S. banking industry because he sought to drastically rein in practices concerning credit card late fees and overdraft fees.
“We’re hopeful that Secretary Bessent will take into account the real-world ramifications regulations have on America’s leading banks, the millions of consumers they serve, and the economy as a whole,” the Consumer Bankers Association said Monday in a statement the CNBC.
After Trump became president, Chopra remained for nearly two weeks.
On Saturday, he confirmed he was let go in an email from the White House.
“It’s been an honor serving as your @CFPB Director,” he posted on X along with his letter to Trump. “Every day, Americans from across the country shared their ideas and experiences with us. You helped us hold powerful companies & their executives accountable for breaking the law, and you made our work better.”
The agency was created in 2018 after the global financial crisis that included banks’ problematic lending practices.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a leading proponent of banking regulations, said in a statement: “Under Rohit Chopra’s leadership, the CFPB is holding Wall Street accountable for cheating hard-working families and preventing the de-banking of Americans across the country, including consumers locked out of the financial system due to overdraft fees, religious organizations, and conservatives. The agency has returned over $20 billion to consumers since its founding — protecting Americans from junk fees, medical debt and predatory lending.”
She then spoke about Trump, saying he “campaigned on capping credit card interest rates at 10% and lowering costs for Americans. He needs a strong CFPB and a strong CFPB director to do that. But if President Trump and Republicans decide to cower to Wall Street billionaires and destroy the agency, they will have a fight on their hands.”
Elon Musk, who heads the Department of Government Efficiency, has called for the agency to be abolished.
“Delete CFPB,” the billionaire wrote on X on Nov. 27. “There are too many duplicative regulatory agencies.”