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Trump Taps Banking Executive Frank Bisignano to Lead Social Security Administration – A Look at His Background and Political Donations

In Citizen
January 17, 2025

Transition of power

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Trump has chosen a banking executive, Frank Bisignano, to head the Social Security Administration. Bisignano has worked at large Wall Street banks throughout his career and has a track record of donating to Republican political campaigns.

Authored by Minho Kim

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On Wednesday night, President-elect Trump revealed his selection of Frank Bisignano, the chairman of Fiserv, a large payment processing company, to lead the Social Security Administration. This federal agency has over 1,200 field offices and nearly 60,000 employees.

The president-elect praised Frank as a successful business leader known for effectively changing big companies. The president-elect stated in a social media post that Frank will have the responsibility of ensuring that the Agency fulfills its promises to the American people.

Mr. Bisignano quickly rose to a high-ranking position in the New York finance industry in his late twenties as a senior vice president at Shearson Lehman Brothers. Following the bank’s collapse in 2008, he spent nearly five years there before moving on to work at other prominent Wall Street banks such as Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, and JPMorgan Chase & Company.

In 2017, Mr. Bisignano was ranked as the second highest-paid CEO in the United States, receiving over $100 million in compensation that year. This amount was more than 2,000 times the average salary of an employee at his company, First Data Corporation, which later merged with Fiserv.

Mr. Bisignano has a significant track record of donating to political causes, with a focus on supporting Republican candidates. According to federal campaign finance records, his wife Tracy Bisignano contributed close to $1 million to Donald Trump’s campaign in October. However, in November 2023, he also invested $15,000 in the presidential campaign of Chris Christie, a former Republican governor of New Jersey who initially ran against Trump but eventually withdrew from the race.

On Wednesday, Mr. Trump shared a detailed biography of Mr. Bisignano on social media and praised him and his family, but did not mention the specific position he was being appointed to. An hour later, the president-elect clarified the situation, putting an end to the speculation about Mr. Bisignano’s new role.

Minho Kim reports on current events and environmental issues, working out of Washington. To learn more about Minho Kim, click here.

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