Treasury's No 2 out: Michael Faulkender quits in 5 months; second top exit in a month

Michael Faulkender , the US treasury department ’s deputy secretary, is stepping down less than five months after being confirmed to the role by the Senate.

“I would like to thank deputy secretary Faulkender for his dedication and service. Since January, he has played a critical role in overseeing the US Department of the Treasury’s operations and executing on President Trump’s bold economic agenda,” treasury secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement on Friday, as quoted by news portal Politico.

Faulkender, a key figure in President Trump’s economic team, had a wide-ranging policy portfolio that included tax policy, international finance, sanctions, and financial regulation. His exit, initially reported by The Wall Street Journal, was confirmed by two individuals familiar with the matter, though no official reason has been provided, reported the portal.

Bessent credited Faulkender with supporting the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” and the “GENIUS Act,” and with helping implement sanctions against adversarial nations.

A former finance professor at the University of Maryland, Faulkender earlier served as chief economist at the America First Policy Institute and was a senior aide to then-treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin during Trump’s first term. He was confirmed to the No 2 Treasury role in a 53-43 Senate vote along party lines.

Faulkender had also briefly served as acting IRS commissioner amid internal disputes over leadership, including a high-profile clash between Bessent and Elon Musk on IRS oversight. His departure comes shortly after the exit of IRS chief Billy Long, marking the second senior-level change at the department in recent weeks.