Jerome Powell likely to be announced by Donald Trump as next Fed chair
Today, Donald Trump is expected to tap former investment banker Jerome Powell to replace Janet Yellen as the leader of America’s central bank.
Nominated to the board of governors in 2012 by Barrack Obama, Powell’s choice is seen as the ‘safe’ option. He’s expected to continue Janet Yellen’s policy of gradually reversing the central bank’s crisis footing by incrementally hiking rates and slowly selling the $4.5 trillion of assets the Fed has accumulated post-2008.
Once announced, Powell must be confirmed by the Senate. Here, his hesitancy to unequivocally support to the Trump administration’s financial deregulation proposals, which seek to wind back many of the safeguards put in place after the 2008 financial crisis, may cause him some trouble. More than 20 ultra-conservative Republican senators voted against Powell’s appointment in 2012; some may do likewise in the coming months.
Nonetheless, Powell is expected to be confirmed. If so, he will replace Janet Yellen when her term expires in February.
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