Gary Gensler
Gary S. Gensler (born October 18, 1957) is an American government official and former Goldman Sachs investment banker serving as the chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).[1] Gensler previously led the Biden–Harris transition's Federal Reserve, Banking, and Securities Regulators agency review team.[2] Prior to his appointment, he was professor of Practice of Global Economics and Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management.[3]
Gary Gensler
Gensler served as the 11th chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, under President Barack Obama, from May 26, 2009, to January 3, 2014. He was the Under Secretary of the Treasury for Domestic Finance (1999–2001), and the Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Markets (1997–1999). Prior to his career in the federal government, Gensler worked at Goldman Sachs, where he was a partner and co-head of finance. Gensler also served as the CFO for the Hillary Clinton 2016 presidential campaign.[4] President Joe Biden nominated Gensler to serve as 33rd chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.[5] He succeeded SEC Acting Chair Allison Lee.
Early life and education[edit]
Gensler was born into a Jewish family[6] in Baltimore, Maryland, one of five children of Jane (née Tilles) and Sam Gensler.[7] Sam Gensler was a cigarette and pinball machine vendor to local bars,[8] and he provided Gensler with his first exposure to the real-world side of finance when Sam would take Gensler to the bars of Baltimore to count nickels from the vending machines.[6]
Gensler graduated from Pikesville High School in 1975,[9] where he was later given a Distinguished Alumnus award.[10] Gensler graduated with a degree in economics, summa cum laude, after three years at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania,[11] followed by a master's in business administration the following year.[9] Gensler's identical twin brother also studied at the University of Pennsylvania.[12] As an undergraduate, Gensler joined the University of Pennsylvania crew team as a coxswain, dropping his weight to 112 pounds to keep the boat at its proper weight.[9]
Business career[edit]
In 1979, Gensler joined Goldman Sachs, where he spent 18 years.[13] At 30, Gensler became one of the youngest persons to have made partner at the firm at the time.[14] He spent the 1980s working as a top mergers and acquisitions banker, having assumed responsibility for Goldman's efforts in advising media companies.[15] He subsequently made the transition to trading and finance[16] in Tokyo,[8] where he directed the firm's fixed income and currency trading.[15]
While at Goldman Sachs, Gensler led a team that advised the National Football League in capturing the then-most lucrative deal in television history, when the NFL secured a $3.6 billion deal selling television sports rights.[17]
Gensler's last role at Goldman Sachs was co-head of finance, responsible for controllers and treasury worldwide.[18] Gensler left Goldman after 18 years[19] when he was nominated by President Bill Clinton and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to be the Assistant Secretary of the Treasury.[11]
Gensler served on the board of for-profit university Strayer Education, Inc. from 2001 to 2009.[20]
Author[edit]
Outside of Gensler's business and public service career, Gensler has co-authored a book with Greg Baer, a fellow Clinton Administration alum, The Great Mutual Fund Trap. The book uses empirical data to show that the average mutual fund consistently underperforms the market.[250] The book argues that actively-traded mutual funds carry high fees and lower-than-market returns, and investors should instead rely on low-fee index funds rather than constantly attempt to beat the market.
Political involvement[edit]
Gensler served as treasurer of the Maryland Democratic Party for two years,[9] and held several senior roles on the Maryland campaigns of U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski, former Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, and Governor Martin O'Malley.[251] During the 2008 presidential campaign cycle, Gensler served as a senior advisor to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and later advised the Obama campaign.[251] In May 2015, Gensler was named chief financial officer of Clinton's campaign for president.[252]
Academic[edit]
Gensler is Professor of the Practice of Global Economics and Management, MIT Sloan School of Management, co-director of MIT’s Fintech@CSAIL and senior adviser to the MIT Media Lab Digital Currency Initiative.[253] He focuses on the intersection of finance and technology, conducts research and teaches on blockchain technology,[254] digital currencies, financial technology and public policy. He is a member of the New York Fed Fintech Advisory Group, a group of experts in financial technology that regularly presents views and perspectives on the topic to the president of the New York Fed.[255]
Gensler won the MIT Sloan Outstanding Teacher Award based upon student nominations for the 2018–19 academic year.[253]
Personal life[edit]
Gensler lives in Baltimore with his three daughters, Anna, Lee and Isabel.[6] Gensler was married to filmmaker and photo collagist Francesca Danieli from 1986 until her death from breast cancer in 2006.[256]
Gensler is a runner and has finished nine marathons[8] and one 50-mile ultramarathon.[251] He also is a mountain climber, having summited Mt. Rainier and Mt. Kilimanjaro.[251]