Discussions among a group of lawyers with allegiance to the president were closely held. Some senior White House officials were said to have felt blindsided as the agreement took shape.

© Jason Andrew for The New York Times

Treasury Secretary Bessent backed the idea, which would require legislation allowing a living person to appear on currency.

© Kent Nishimura/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

There’s no telling where this leads.

As the government has been devising plans to keep the dollar dominant, China has been making its own moves to increase global influence of the renminbi.

The new measures are focused on Chinese companies that supply Iran’s military with materials to make drones.

China told its independent refineries to disregard U.S. sanctions over their purchases of Iranian crude.

The measures aim to crack down on Iran’s shadow banking system and Chinese purchases of Iranian oil.