FDIC's Bair Will Leave Agency Next Year
NEW YORK (
) -- Self-described regulatory "hawk" Sheila Bair offered a nugget of hope on Monday for bankers and colleagues who have been butting heads with her for 4 years: She still plans to retire in 2011.
"As I've said before, I'm going to serve out my term," Bair, chairman of the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
, said at an industry conference. "I do not want to be reappointed."
Bair was appointed chairman of the FDIC by former President George W. Bush in June of 2006 for a five-year term, and as a member of the FDIC Board of Directors through July 2013. Since then, she's gained a reputation for butting heads with other regulators -- particularly those known to go easier on banks -- and for being a stickler about capital levels. At the Securities Industry and Financial Markets (SIFMA) event on Monday, she was asked by interviewer Charlie Rose what it meant to be a regulatory "hawk."
"A hawk to me in regulation means somebody who is an aggressive regulator," she said. "...I am a hawk; the FDIC is a hawk."
Bair also said she wished that Congress had made the Financial Stability Oversight Council an independent entity rather than one that's chaired by the U.S. Treasury Department. She said it's "fine" that Treasury will oversee the council, but an independent director could have better shielded the entity from politics and distractions from the enormous task of running another huge federal agency.
In explaining her decision to take a step back from the regulatory realm when her term expires, Bair said chiefly it's because agencies do better when "fresh faces" are introduced. But, perhaps more importantly, she also said the lengthy term through the bubble's inflation and bursting has taken a toll on her personal life."I'm tired," said Bair. "...My husband has been a saint for the last five years."
Disclosure: TheStreet's editorial policy prohibits staff editors, reporters and analysts from holding positions in any individual stocks.
