Bessent Taunts Druckenmiller Over Bond Losses as US Treasuries Post Best Month

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent publicly fired back at billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller on August 31, telling CNBC from the G20 finance meeting in Asheville that his former boss and mentor "doesn't like losing money" after the US bond market posted its best performance of the month. The exchange stems from a Wall Street Journal op-ed, titled "Let the Bond Market Speak," that Druckenmiller published last week accusing Bessent of suppressing long-term yields through doubled Treasury bond buybacks and undermining what Druckenmiller called the only remaining fiscal disciplinarian in the US.

Bessent, speaking to CNBC, acknowledged he had spoken with Druckenmiller after the op-ed appeared and pushed back on the critique, arguing he does not believe he can change the equilibrium price of bonds. He also noted that Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh shares his view on the bond market. Bessent's broader point was that the strong monthly performance of Treasuries vindicated his approach, even as critics argued the intervention distorted market signals.

The buyback program, announced August 19, had initially driven the 30-year yield down from 5.28% to 5.17% on the announcement alone, though yields climbed back above pre-announcement levels in subsequent days, with the 10-year sitting near 4.64% and the 30-year near 5.17% by late August. Druckenmiller's op-ed urged Bessent to abandon the expanded buyback scheme entirely and allow the market to freely set the price for government debt, warning the strategy was hiding the true cost of roughly 40 trillion dollars in national debt.