Senate Confirms Michelle Bowman as Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision

Last week, the U.S. Senate confirmed Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman to serve as the Fed’s Vice Chair for Supervision by a narrow vote of 48-46. Bowman has served as a governor on the Fed’s board since 2018. President Trump nominated the former community banker to the role in March and she is expected to push an agenda aimed at easing up on rules for banks. 

“I look forward to working with Vice Chair Bowman to increase transparency in financial regulation, right-size our regulatory framework, and protect access to credit for hardworking Americans,” said Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Chair of the Senate Banking Committee, according to Banking Dive. Once sworn in, the Fed will have a point person on supervision for the first time since Michael Barr, who still serves as a Fed governor, stepped down from the job. 

Reuters noted that in Bowman’s new role, she will lead the Fed’s efforts to write rules for the nation’s biggest, most complex banks. This will likely include easing leverage rules for big banks, developing simpler capital rules for large firms, and making the annual “stress tests” for large banks more transparent. 

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, warned against putting Bowman in charge of supervision, citing her recent support for lifting long-standing asset caps on Wells Fargo, as well as the acquisition of Discover by Capital One. Warren also noted Bowman’s opposition to updates to the Community Reinvestment Act. 

“In her six years on the Federal Reserve Board, Governor Bowman has hacked away bit by bit at the safeguards put in place after the 2008 financial crisis,” Warren said. “Deregulating Wall Street right now would throw gasoline on [President Donald] Trump’s economic fire.”

In April, Bowman testified before lawmakers and said that current financial rules have become “overly complicated and redundant,” and impose unnecessary costs on both banks and customers. She stressed the importance of promoting safety while not stifling economic activity.