President Donald Trump is reportedly close to choosing a replacement for the “most powerful man in banking.”
That characterization, from the Wall Street Journal, is in reference to Daniel Tarullo, who recently stepped down as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
And according to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, Trump is expected to name Randal Quarles, a former Treasury Department official under President George W. Bush, to replace Tarullo in one the Fed’s most important positions.
Tarullo served as vice chairman of supervision at the Fed, a position that made him the Fed’s top official for overseeing banks. Many considered Tarullo to be the Federal Reserve’s point man on overhauling the financial system.
Tarullo shocked many in the industry when he announced his resignation in February. Tarullo joined the Fed Board on Jan. 28, 2009, and his term wasn’t set to expire until 2022.
But Tarullo officially stepped down from that role earlier this month, leaving Trump with the chance to reshape the Fed’s regulatory agenda.
Last month, CNBC reported that the Trump administration was considering Thomas Vartanian, who “advised Bank of America on its purchase of the troubled mortgage lender Countrywide during the financial crisis,” to replace Tarullo.
But the WSJ states that the Trump administration recently expanded its search for Tarullo’s replacement and appears to have settled on Quarles.
From the WSJ:
Randal Quarles, who now runs the Cynosure Group, a Salt Lake City-based investment firm he co-founded, is expected to be selected as the Fed’s vice chairman for bank supervision. The position requires Senate confirmation.
Mr. Quarles served at Treasury from 2001 to 2006, including as undersecretary for domestic finance in his final two years at the department. He was a partner of the Carlyle Group, one of the world’s largest private equity firms. He also served at the Treasury in the administration of George H.W. Bush.
For more on Quarles, including his views on Dodd-Frank, click here or below (tiered paywall).
