Trump Pick for SEC Faces Sharp Conflict-of-Interest Scrutiny (3)

Paul Atkins, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission, faced an early political test over his strong ties to Wall Street and digital-asset firms.

At his nomination hearing Thursday, the former Republican SEC commissioner and founder of consulting firm Patomak Global Partners met with stiff opposition from Democratic lawmakers over his potential conflicts of interest and support of deregulation.

Senator Elizabeth Warren, speaking just before his Banking Committee hearing, said she’s concerned that Atkins is “thinking about his past and future clients” rather than American families. That criticism is unlikely to get ...