Scott Bessent

Scott Bessent (born 1962) is a American investor, philanthropist, and educator.[1][2][3][4] He is the founder of Key Square Group, a global macro investment firm.[1][5][6][7][8]

Early life and education

Bessent was born in Conway, South Carolina.[9][10] He attended Yale College, graduating in 1984.[9][11][12]  While at Yale, Bessent wrote for The Yale Daily News, was President of Wolf's Head Society and Treasurer for the class of 1984.[13]

Investment career

Bessent was previously the Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management, the $30 billion family office of billionaire George Soros.[9][14][15][16] From 2006 to 2011, Bessent was an Adjunct Professor of economic history at Yale, where he taught three courses.[9][10][17][2][12] The Daily Beast included his 2010 class in its listing of “Hottest College Courses.”[18]

Bessent first joined Soros Fund Management (SFM) in 1991 and was a partner there throughout the 1990s.[9][2] At the age of 29, he was asked to head SFM's London office.[9][14][19][20]

According to Sebastian Mallaby's history of hedge funds, More Money Than God, Bessent's analytics played a key role in helping George Soros and Stan Druckenmiller construct SFM's wager against the British pound, which netted the firm a profit of $1 billion.[10][21][5][22][23]

In addition to heading the London office, Bessent served as SFM's head of global research and co-head of external manager selection.2,3,5,16 He also directly managed $1.5 billion of the firm's capital.[9][24]

After resigning from SFM in 2000, Bessent founded a $1 billion hedge fund, which he converted to a family office in 2005.[9][19] He was also a senior investment advisor at fund-of-funds Protégé Partners.[10][2]

Bessent was in the process of starting a new fund in the summer of 2011 when George Soros asked him to return to SFM as CIO.[14][6]

Bessent served as the Chief Investment Officer of Soros Fund Management from 2011 to 2015.[25] Under Bessent's leadership, the firm made a profit of $10 billion.[25][26] 

In August 2015, it was announced that Bessent would be leaving Soros Fund Management to start his new firm, Key Square Group, with $2 billion of George Soros's money.[25][15][16]

Key Square Group

Bessent founded Key Square Group with Michael Germino, who had been the Global Head of Capital Markets at SFM.[26] A number of the pair's former colleagues from SFM followed them to Key Square.[26][7]

Key Square received a $2 billion anchor investment from George Soros.[25][15][16] By the end of its first quarter of operation, Key Square was managing $4.5 billion.[8] 

At the end of 2017, Key Square's assets were $5.1 billion.[25][1] Bloomberg in May 2018 reported that Key Square had mostly outperformed rival macro managers and continued to generate significant investor interest.[25] As part of a pre-arranged deal, the firm gradually returned the Soros capital as it took in other assets.[25] Its investors include Australia's sovereign wealth fund.[1]

Philanthropy

Bessent has been active at his alma mater, Yale University, where he sits on the University Council.[13] He and his sister donated the Bessent Library to Yale in honor of their father, H. Gaston Bessent, Jr.[27] Bessent has also endowed three scholarships at Yale, including one for students who are first-generation college matriculants, one for students from South Carolina, and one for students from the Bronx.[27]

Bessent previously served on the board of God's Love We Deliver, an organization founded to deliver meals for homebound people with AIDS.[13][28] He is a supporter of The Harlem Children's Zone, where he has chaired their annual dinner and mentors recent graduates.[29]

Bessent currently serves on the board of trustees of Rockefeller University, where he chairs the Investment Committee and is a member of the Executive Committee.[30] He is vice-chair of Classical American Homes Preservation Trust, and a former board member of the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, South Carolina.[30][31] Bessent is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.[13][30]

Personal life

Bessent resides in Charleston, South Carolina.[32]

References
  1. "Volatility Offers Rich Pickings," The Australian, November 16, 2018
  2. “Soros Puts New Man at Helm,” Wall Street Journal, September 20, 2011
  3. School, Columbia Business (2013-03-08). "Institutional Investing: Alternative Assets in Pension Plans". Courses at Columbia Business School. Retrieved 2018-12-04. {{cite news}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  4. "Kenan Institute Welcomes Investor Scott Bessent for Lunch and Discussion with Kenan Scholars – Student Opportunities". www.kenaninstitute.unc.edu. Retrieved 2018-12-04.
  5. “Scott Bessent Quits Soros Group to Launch Hedge Fund,” Financial Times, August 4, 2015
  6. “George Soros’ Protégé Just Nailed One of the Biggest Hedge Fund Launches Ever,” Business Insider, January 5, 2016   
  7. “Bessent’s $5.3 Billion Fund Makes Star Emerging Markets Hire,” Bloomberg, March 27, 2017   
  8. “Former George Soros Executive Raises $4.5bn For New Fund,” Financial Times, January 5, 2016   
  9. "Meet The Hedge Fund Superstar George Soros Just Hired To Take Over His $25 Billion Fund," Business Insider, September 19, 2011
  10. "Soros Aide Wins Kudos for Japan Bets," Wall Street Journal, February 14, 2013   
  11. "Ex-Soros Trader Bessent Returns to $25 Billion Firm as CIO," Bloomberg, September 19, 2011
  12. “Life and Money Management,” Yale Alumni Magazine, Sept/Oct 2015   
  13. “New Members Appointed to University Council,” YaleNews, November 8, 2016   
  14. "Soros appoints new CIO to family office," Financial Times, September 19, 2011
  15. “Soros’s Investment Chief to Depart,” Wall Street Journal, August 4, 2015   
  16. “Soros’ CIO to Start Own Hedge Fund with $2 Bln,” Reuters, August 4, 2015   
  17. "Sohn Hearts and Minds 2018: Top Investment Tips from Leading Fund Managers," Australian Financial Review, November 16, 2018   
  18. “Hottest College Courses: From Economics to Sustainable Food,” The Daily Beast, September 6, 2010   
  19. “Soros’ European Investment Head Bessent Leaves,” Bloomberg, June 8, 2000   
  20. “Top Soros Man Bessent Quits to Start Hedge Fund,” Telegraph, June 9, 2000
  21. "Stock Pickers Let Good Tips Roll," The Australian, November 16, 2018   
  22. “A Top Soros Money Manager Is Leaving to Start Own Firm,” Wall Street Journal, June 9, 2000   
  23. “George Soros ‘Makes $1.2bn Betting Against Yen’,” The Guardian, February 15, 2013
  24. “Former Soros Manager Scott Bessent Raises $1 Bln for New Funds,” Bloomberg, September 27, 2000
  25. “George Soros Gets Most of His $2 Billion Back from Bessent," Bloomberg, May 14, 2018
  26. “Ex-Soros’s Bessent Raises $4.5 Billion For New Hedge Fund Firm,” Bloomberg, January 5, 2016   
  27. “Annual Report of Giving to Yale, 2000-2001," www.giving.yale.edu
  28. “Out 100 -- Money + Business: Scott Bessent,” Out Magazine, January 2001
  29. “Harlem Children’s Zone Annual Benefit, April 24, 2013.” http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork/organization/Harlem_Children's_Zone_30051   
  30. "Three New Trustees Are Elected to the Board," Rockefeller University Press Release, March 3, 2016
  31. “Palatial Purchase Palmer Home B&B on East Battery, Known as the Pink Palace, Sells for $6.5M,” Post and Courier, June 21, 2016
  32. McDermott, John (July 31, 2022). "SC hedge fund investor looks to spread the word about math and financial literacy". Post and Courier.

Further reading

Steven Drobny, "The Stock Operator: Scott Bessent," Inside the House of Money

Sebastian Mallaby, More Money Than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite

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