A Bloomberg article titled "How the US is using swap lines to project financial power," on the Trump administration’s expanding use of currency swap lines, features insight from Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs, on the risks and limits of deploying these financial instruments as tools of geopolitical influence.

Swap lines — arrangements that give other nations access to dollars during times of economic stress — have gained new attention after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signaled plans to extend these to Gulf and Asian nations as a strategy to reinforce the U.S. dollar’s dominance. The UAE, despite holding ample reserves and a large sovereign wealth fund, has reportedly expressed interest in obtaining a line, prompting Bloomberg to explore what’s driving the trend.

McDowell offered a cautionary note, warning that using swap lines as a geopolitical instrument could undermine confidence in the dollar itself, if other nations come to believe the U.S. will only intervene on their behalf based on political relationships with the White House. He also noted that earlier Treasury swap lines typically required a reliable source of repayment, like a forthcoming IMF loan, as a safeguard against default.