Donald Trump confirmed that he will nominate Jay Clayton, a prominent Wall Street lawyer, as the next chair of the SEC.

Donald Trump President-Elect of the United States

Clayton is currently a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell, specializing in M&A, capital markets offerings, and regulatory and enforcement proceedings. He has done some work within financial services, including assisting Barclays with its 2008 purchase of Lehman Brothers. However, his asset management experience seems limited to advising high-net-worth families regarding their investments.

"Jay Clayton is a highly talented expert on many aspects of financial and regulatory law, and he will ensure our financial institutions can thrive and create jobs while playing by the rules at the same time," noted the president-elect in a statement issued earlier today.

This marks the first step in a series of three SEC appointments that Trump will make. An additional two commissioner seats are vacant—Republican David Gallagher left the commission in October 2015 and Democrat Luis Aguilar left in December 2015. Gallagher was one of the rumored contenders for the top spot when Mary Jo announced she would be stepping down at the end of President Obama's term. 

Edited by: Katy Golvala


Stay ahead of the news ... Sign up for our email alerts now
CLICK HERE