Trump at Trump Tower on Dec 6, 2016. Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images
On Wednesday, President-Elect Donald Trump announced that he would be selecting Wall Street lawyer Jay Clayton to become the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, CNBC reports.According to the Washington Post, Clayton is a partner at the New York law firm of Sullivan & Cromwell and has assisted large banks like Barclays and Goldman Sachs during the 2008 financial crisis. With a background in aiding major companies in mergers and acquisitions, Clayton is expected to help Trump roll back regulations on banks, like parts of 2010's Dodd-Frank Act, if his appointment is confirmed by Congress as expected."Jay Clayton is a highly talented expert on many aspects of financial and regulatory law, and he will ensure our financial institutions can thrive and create jobs while playing by the rules at the same time," Trump said in a statement Wednesday. "We need to undo many regulations which have stifled investment in American businesses, and restore oversight of the financial industry in a way that does not harm American workers."Like many of Trump's prospective appointees to top positions, Clayton has never worked in government before. He would be taking the job currently occupied by Mary Jo White, a former prosecutor who also worked for major banks before being appointed by Barack Obama in 2013.