Piwowar Named Acting SEC Chairman; OCIE Director Leaves for Private Sector

The SEC announced that Commissioner Michael Piwowar has been designated acting chairman by President Donald J. Trump.  Wall Street lawyer Jay Clayton, who was nominated to be the next chairman, is awaiting a confirmation hearing before the Senate Banking Committee. Two commissioner vacancies remain open at the agency. Piwowar, a Republican, and Democrat Kara Stein are the only commissioners at the agency and can approve rules and enforcement actions but only by unanimous vote. The SEC also announced that Marc Wyatt, Director of the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations, will leave the agency in February to return to the private sector. Wyatt joined the SEC in December 2012 as a senior specialized examiner and co-founded the Private Fund Unit within OCIE and was named director in November 2015.