The United States Treasury Department is laying the groundwork for a new $250 banknote bearing President Donald Trump's face, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed on Thursday. The bill, a design mock-up of which was first obtained by The Washington Post, is intended to commemorate the nation's 250th anniversary of independence — a milestone the United States will mark on July 4, 2026. If realised, it would be the first time a living person has appeared on American currency in more than 150 years.

Under current federal law, dating back to 1866, no living person may be depicted on US currency — a prohibition enacted after a Treasury official printed his own image on a five-cent note, provoking public outrage. To put Trump on the new bill, Congress would need to pass legislation creating an exception; a bill to that effect was introduced last year but has yet to advance. Bessent told reporters at a White House briefing that Treasury had prepared a design in anticipation of a legal change, while stressing that the final decision rested with Capitol Hill. "We will stick to the law," he said. According to The Washington Post, Trump appointee and US Treasurer Brandon Beach had pushed staff at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to expedite prototypes. The bureau's director, Patricia Solimene, reportedly raised legal and procedural objections before being abruptly reassigned from her post.

The proposal fits into a broader pattern of efforts to attach Trump's name and image to national institutions since he returned to the White House in January 2025. His portrait hangs on banners at the Department of Justice and other federal buildings; his name has been added to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — originally designated by Congress as a memorial to assassinated President John F. Kennedy — and to the US Institute of Peace. His signature is also set to appear on all future paper currency, a first for a sitting president, and his image will feature in some US passports. In March, a Trump-appointed arts commission approved a commemorative 24-carat gold coin bearing his likeness, exploiting a legal loophole for commemorative coins.

Reaction to the $250 bill announcement has been sharply critical in many quarters. Senator Mark Warner, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, called the proposal a blatant effort at "stoking the president's ego." Online critics drew comparisons to the practices of monarchs and authoritarian leaders, and noted that even George Washington had declined to appear on currency while alive, fearing it would evoke a monarchy. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton mocked the news on social media, writing: "By the end of Trump's term, it'll be just enough to buy one gallon of gas and a carton of eggs." The Treasury Department has said it is conducting "appropriate planning and due diligence" in response to the active legislation, but emphasised that no bill will be printed unless Congress acts.