Steven Mnuchin is a former U.S. Treasury secretary who said this week that he is interested in buying TikTok, just days after his investment firm led a $1 billion deal to inject life into a beaten-down bank
It seems like a bizarre mishmash: A former Trump cabinet official is saying he wants to buy TikTok just days after leading a group that pumped $1 billion into a beaten-down bank. But it all actually fits in with the complicated career of Steven Mnuchin.
The man who served as former President Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary is well connected in the world of finance, after all. From 1985 to 2002, he worked at Goldman Sachs, one of the most storied — and criticized — investment banks on Wall Street.
Mnuchin also has a history in media and entertainment. Among his Hollywood credits are “Mad Max: Fury Road” and “The Lego Movie,” where he was one of the executive producers. Think of them as much bigger-budget versions of TikTok videos.
And Mnuchin certainly has experience taking risks with troubled institutions. He famously swooped in to turn around the struggling IndyMac bank after its failure in the financial crisis of 2008.
But for critics, Mnuchin’s dealmaking also raises concerns about ethics. Robert Weissman, president of the watchdog group Public Citizen, points to TikTok in particular, where the U.S. government may force its Chinese owners to sell. Imagine something similar happening in another country, where its former finance minister ended up as the buyer, he said.
“When you’re at the top of the financial policymaking hierarchy, you don’t jump from that to figure out how you can help yourself,” Weissman said.
Other former Treasury secretaries have gone to Wall Street after their terms ended, including Robert Rubin, a Goldman Sachs executive who served under President Clinton. In all cases, the move carries the appearance of cashing in on their time in government, Weissman said.
Mnuchin, who couldn’t be reached for comment through a request via his private-equity firm, has often generated controversy as he has generated cash.
