Fed Governor Quarles Resigns

…and another one bites the dust.

Federal Reserve Governor Randal Quarles will step down from the central bank in the last week of December.

Quarles joined the Board in 2017. His four-year term as Vice Chair of Supervision ended in October, though he has a term as a governor that runs to January 2032.

One can’t help but get the feeling this is a cleaning of the house before Brainard takes over from Powell as Quarles has been criticized by Senator Elizabeth Warren for sanding down bank regulations during his tenure, and she has also said she would not support a second term for Powell.

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Full Statement from The Fed:

Randal K. Quarles submitted his resignation Monday as a member of the Federal Reserve Board, effective at the end of December. He served as the Board’s first Vice Chair for Supervision and has been a member of the Board since October 13, 2017.

As Vice Chair for Supervision, he oversaw the supervision and regulation of financial firms in the Board’s jurisdiction. He served simultaneously as Chair of the Financial Stability Board, or FSB, an international body established by the G20 to ensure the resilience of the global financial system. His three-year term as FSB Chair ends on December 2.

In both positions, he played a central role in ensuring the safe operation of both the domestic and international financial systems during the stress of the COVID event.

Prior to his appointment to the Board, Quarles was founder and managing director of the Cynosure Group, a private investment firm. He also served in a variety of senior positions at the Treasury Department under both Bush administrations, including Under Secretary for Domestic Finance, was the U.S. Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund, and was a partner at both the Carlyle Group, and earlier, Davis Polk & Wardwell. He is married with three children and is from Utah.

Quarles resignation is below:

This now leaves President Biden to fill four jobs at The Fed.

Developing…