White in the running to be SEC chairman
MARY Jo White, the former US attorney for the Southern District of New York, is being considered as a candidate to head up the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a source familiar with the matter has confirmed to Reuters.
If she were selected, White would become the third-ever female chairman of the SEC and replace current Chairman Elisse Walter, a commissioner who took over as chairman in December after Mary Schapiro stepped down.
The source, who declined to be named, did not provide any additional details because the deliberations over the SEC chairman candidacy are not public. Bloomberg first reported last week that White was among those in the running.
It is unclear if Walter is also being considered for a permanent spot, and she has not publicly expressed her ambitions. Walter is able to continue serving as chairman until the end of the year. After that, she would need to be re-confirmed again by the US Senate in order to remain at the agency.
Until a fifth person is tapped by the White House, the SEC currently remains divided between two Democrats and two Republicans – a fact that many believe could slow the agency down and make it harder to finalise controversial rules.