US President Joe Biden announced Friday his intention to nominate Michael Barr for the key position of vice chair for supervision of the Federal Reserve, one month after his first pick dropped out.
Barr’s nomination will have to be confirmed by the Senate.
“Michael brings the expertise and experience necessary for this important position at a critical time for our economy and families across the country,” Biden said in a statement.
Currently serving as dean of the University of Michigan’s public policy school, Barr also worked at the Treasury Department during the Bill Clinton and Barack Obama administrations.
He was one of the main architects of the Dodd-Frank Act, passed after the 2008 global financial crisis, which was aimed at better regulating the activities of large US financial institutions.
He also helped create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the position for which Biden nominated him.
If confirmed, Barr will oversee supervision and regulation of banking giants such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup.
“He understands that this job is not a partisan one, but one that plays a critical role in regulating our nation’s financial institutions to ensure Americans are treated fairly and to protect the stability of our economy,” the president said.
Biden’s original nominee for the position, Sarah Bloom Raskin, withdrew from the race in mid-March when her nomination appeared to be in jeopardy due to a lack of support in the Senate.
Republican senators, as well as Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, said that they would not give her their votes.
In addition to Barr, the Senate must confirm four other nominations to the Fed’s board of directors, including those of its current chairman Jerome Powell and of Lael Brainard as vice chair.
