Press Releases

House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill (AR-02) delivered remarks at today's hearing with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

Watch Chairman Hill’s opening remarks here.

Read Chairman Hill’s opening remarks as prepared for delivery:

"I want to welcome Secretary Bessent to his first appearance before our Committee. The President is fortunate to have a Cabinet official of his caliber.

"This annual hearing is meant to examine the international financial system.

"The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the regional development banks can play a key role in advancing U.S. interests. But, in recent years they’ve surrendered to mission creep.

"Under the Biden Administration, the IMF’s management tried to turn the Fund into a 'World Bank Lite,' launching initiatives on climate change and social policy.

"If the Trump Administration wants to pull back on the IMF’s mission creep, it can start by scrapping the Resilience and Sustainability Facility and focusing on the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust.

"Other reforms are just as vital. In 2021, the IMF’s management pushed through an allocation of Special Drawing Rights that gave China over $40 billion in unconditional liquidity, with another $17 billion going to Russia, and around $5 billion each to Iran and Venezuela.

"Congress had no say in the matter.

"Any future SDR allocations must have elected lawmakers’ buy-in.

"Moving forward, we need leadership at the IMF that cares more about the Fund’s core mission rather than hurting the feelings of the Chinese Communist Party.

"Think about it: no one can say what the true growth rate of the world’s second-largest economy is.

"No one really understands how China manages its exchange rate. It has nearly a trillion-dollar trade surplus and a central bank controlled by a dictatorial party.

"Its opaque predatory lending to developing countries has seen no significant restructuring.

"All of this is an indictment of the IMF’s leadership, and we need transparency.

"Turning from the IMF, the World Bank and Asian Development Bank still greenlight a billion dollars per year for Chinese projects.

"I urge the Trump Administration to end all World Bank and ADB assistance to China by the end of President Trump’s term.

"At the same time, I commend the World Bank for its recent openness to financing nuclear energy, which is a priority of mine that enjoys bipartisan support in Congress.

"During the Spring Meetings last month, I met with officials from around the world who agreed that nuclear power is an obvious fit for the development banks’ core mission. I was pleased to see you echo your support for nuclear energy in your remarks last month as well.

"If we care about a 'back-to-basics' approach, the banks can go even further by recommitting themselves to public health, education, and infrastructure.

"For example, seventy percent of 10-year-olds in low- and middle-income countries can’t understand simple written text.

"Over 400,000 children die of malaria each year.

"Half of sub-Saharan Africa has no reliable access to electricity.

"For too long, the World Bank and others have spent more time - and money - on climate change and empty rhetoric than tackle these urgent development challenges.

"Mr. Secretary, our Committee appreciated your remarks during the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings where you outlined an active approach to these issues and noted the critical leadership role the U.S. plays in the multilateral financial institutions.

"We should all be pleased that Treasury has a leader who has signaled that he will take these issues more seriously.

"I look forward to discussing our international financial institutions with you, as well as hearing from our members on the various priorities important to them."