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(Bloomberg) -- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that any release of the two giant government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, from their current conservatorship would depend on the implications for mortgage rates.

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“Right now, the priority is tax policy — once we get through that, we will think about” reforms to Fannie and Freddie, Bessent said after a televised interview with Bloomberg’s Saleha Mohsin on Thursday. The federal government seized direct control of the two companies during the great financial crisis amid the US housing meltdown.

The shares of Fannie and Freddie hit their highest levels since 2019 last month after the outgoing Biden administration set out a roadmap for releasing them from government supervision. Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman recommended the stock, arguing that the duo had improved their capital positions.

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“Anything that is done around a safe and sound release is going to hinge on the effect of long-term mortgage rates,” Bessent said.

He said the “most important metric” he is looking at is any study indicating that those rates would go up.

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