Farley, Champ Among Candidates to Succeed Gensler as SEC Chair

Richard Farley, a partner at Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, and Kirkland & Ellis partner Norm Champare among contenders to replace Gary Gensler as chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Robinhood Markets Inc. legal chief Dan Gallagher, current SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda and Heath Tarbert, a former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, are also among those being considered for the job, said other people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t public.

Also in contention are former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins and Robert Stebbins, a partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher, some of the people said.

Members of President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team and other advisers began talks with potential candidates following Tuesday’s election, some of the people said. Discussions are ongoing, and a candidate may not be chosen for weeks. No matter Trump’s choice, the next SEC chief is likely to scrutinize the major Gensler-era rules still pending or not yet in effect and seek less regulation for the digital-asset industry to comply with securities laws.

Farley, Champ and Uyeda declined to comment. Atkins, Stebbins, Tarbert and Gallagher didn’t immediately reply to messages seeking comment.

Gensler was nominated by President Joe Biden in February 2021 and was sworn in two months later. His term ends in 2026, and he hasn’t said whether he’ll step down when Trump takes office.

Reuters reported earlier that Gallagher, Atkins and Stebbins are being considered for the job. The New York Post reported earlier on Farley.

--With assistance from David Voreacos, Ava Benny-Morrison and Stephanie Lai.

To contact the reporters on this story:
Lydia Beyoud in Washington at lbeyoud2@bloomberg.net;
Gillian Tan in New York at gtan129@bloomberg.net;
Todd Gillespie in New York at tgillespie30@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net

Peter Eichenbaum

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