Biden nominates Michael Barr as Fed Vice President for Supervision

The Biden administration said Friday that it intends to nominate Michael S. Barr, a law professor and former Obama administration official, for the position of Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Oversight.

This position – one of America’s most important financial regulatory positions – has proven particularly thorny.

The administration’s primary candidate, Sarah Bloom Raskin, subsequently failed to win Senate support The Republicans took the case With her writing on climate-related financial oversight, she took advantage of her limited answers about her work in the private sector. Senator Joe Manchin III, Democrat of West Virginia Join the Republicans In deciding not to support her, and to end her chances.

Mr. Barr, dean of the University of Michigan’s School of Public Policy, could also face challenges in securing widespread support. he is He was the main competitor He was nominated as a currency monitor but faced opposition from progressive Democrats.

Some complaints centered around his work in government: As a Treasury official during the Obama administration, Mr. Barr played a key role in collecting Dodd Frank’s Lawwhich renewed financial regulation after the 2008 financial crisis. But some said it was opposed to some particularly tough measures for the big banks.

Other opponents when his name was put up for this position focused on his name private sector work With financial technology and the cryptocurrency industry.

But President Biden described Mr. Barr as a qualified candidate who would bring years of experience to the job.

“Barr has strong support across the political spectrum,” the president said in a statement announcing the decision. He noted that Mr. Barr’s appointment to the Treasury position had been confirmed “on a bipartisan basis”.

“I will support this lead candidate, and strongly urge my fellow Republicans to abandon their old book of personal attacks and demagoguery,” Senator Sherrod Brown, the Ohio Democrat who chairs the Senate Banking Committee, said in a statement.

Ian Katz, managing director of research and advisory firm Alpha Capital, estimated Mr. Barr’s chance of confirmation at 60 percent. “Many view Barr as more moderate than Sarah Bloom Raskin,” Mr. Katz wrote in a note before the announcement but after speculation that Mr. Barr might be chosen.

Mr. Barr completed a list of candidates Biden submitted for the five open positions at the central bank.

The Other Choices – Jerome H. Powell for another term as Fed Chair, Lyle Brainard for Vice President, and Lisa De Kok and Philip N. Jefferson for seats on the Board of Governors – pending confirmation. Those nominations have bypassed the Senate Banking Committee, the first step toward confirmation, and a vote before the full Senate. is expected In the coming weeks.

Mr. Biden said he would work with the committee to get Barr through his first vote quickly, and called for quick confirmation of others.