NY Financial Services Superintendent Adrienne Harris Named to FSOC

A new state banking representative will be serving on the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC).

Adrienne A. Harris, superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services, will take the role beginning Jan. 1. State supervisors voted in September for Harris to take the federal role, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) said in a Tuesday (Dec. 13) press release.

“Superintendent Harris’ background and experience at both the federal and state level will be an asset for the council as it manages emerging risk during a time of economic uncertainty,” CSBS President and CEO James M. Cooper said in the release. “I am confident that our nation’s financial system will be well served by this appointment.

Harris will succeed Charles G. Cooper, Texas banking commissioner, who will conclude his service Dec. 31, according to the release.

Cooper has served as the FSOC’s state banking representative since September 2018, was twice reappointed by his colleagues and most recently was influential in ensuring that the group’s recommendations on digital assets considered state banking regulators, laws and regulations, the release said.

As PYMNTS reported Oct. 3, the FSOC said that crypto-asset activities “could pose risks” to the U.S. financial system’s stability.

“We thank Commissioner Cooper for his service,” CSBS’ James M. Cooper said in the release. “He has been a model for cooperative federalism, reminding both state and federal regulators that we have much to learn from one another and will best succeed when acting together.”

The FSOC monitors the nation’s financial system’s safety and stability, identifying risks and coordinating responses. The state banking representative is one of five non-voting members of the FSOC and is selected by state banking supervisors, according to the press release.

The group and its requirements were created by Title I of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the release said.

“As the chartering authority and primary supervisor of an overwhelming majority of banks in the United States, state supervisors have a unique perspective into the emerging risks and threats to the stability of the financial system,” Harris said in the release. “I am humbled and honored by the support of my fellow state bank regulators to represent their views on this important council.”