Bessent: G20 must refocus on growth, endorse digital assets

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wants the G20 to stop drifting. On February 19 he laid out America's priorities for the group's 2026 presidency, and the message was direct. The G20 should go back to its original job: promoting global growth and managing sovereign debt. And it should formally back a digital assets ecosystem.

Bessent's pitch centers on what he calls the "3-3-3 plan." Three targets. Average GDP growth of 3%. Annual budget deficits capped at 3% of GDP. A daily increase of 3 million barrels in US oil production.

The digital-assets piece is new for a G20 finance agenda. Previous presidencies treated crypto as a risk to contain. Bessent's plan puts it on the infrastructure side. The G20 Finance Track under US leadership will pursue endorsing a digital assets ecosystem and improving cross-border payment systems, the Treasury said.

The G20 Finance Ministerial itself is scheduled for Asheville, North Carolina, from August 29 to September 1.