Trump announced in a Truth Social post that Jared Novelly will be the new US Ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa.
In his post, Trump called Novelly "a highly respected philanthropist, and Chairman of Crest Sports and Entertainment and Crest Management.
"He will fight hard to protect our Nation's interests in the Indo-Pacific, and always put AMERICA FIRST."
Navelly is the owner of the Illiwarra Hawks basketball team and a shareholder in the East Asia Superleague.
Earlier, New Zealand's Minister for Foreign Affairs Winston Peters spoke with new US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to reaffirm New Zealand's partnership with the United States.
Rubio has hosted phone calls with several international ministers during his first week in government, including from China and Israel.
"Based on today's discussion and our experience of working closely with the first Trump Administration, we are confident that the New Zealand-United States relationship can go from strength to strength in the years ahead," Peters wrote in a post on X.
"Our strategic partnership matters a great deal to the security and prosperity of New Zealand and the Indo-Pacific region."
Peters hoped both governments could build on existing bilateral trade agreements and collaborate in "critical sectors such as space".
On January 5 Peters spoke to the previous US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken.
