Jay Clayton, the Wall Street attorney tapped by President Donald Trump to lead the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, on Thursday defended himself against Democrats' charges that multiple conflicts of interest would force him to miss too many SEC votes.
Clayton, a partner at elite law firm Sullivan & Cromwell, is expected to win confirmation easily, although some Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee raised concerns about his ties to Wall Street and Goldman Sachs, a bank he represented during the financial crisis and that employs his wife, Gretchen.
His wife plans to resign from the bank if Clayton is confirmed, and he said he will recuse himself from matters involving his or the firm's clients for two years.
Some clients have included Barclays, Deutsche Bank , Bill Ackman's hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management and former Ocwen Financial Corp Executive Chairman William Erbey.
Clayton told the panel his Wall Street legal experience is a "strength," adding he did not think conflicts of interest would present problems in leading the agency that enforces securities laws and regulates U.S. stock, options and bond markets.
"As far as the extent of my practice and whether the recusals that would be required for potential conflicts will impair my ability to act as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, I do not believe they will do so," he said.
Clayton, a political independent, told the committee the Dodd-Frank financial reform law should be "looked at" to determine if it has achieved its goals.
When pressed on certain parts of the law, such as whether the SEC should delay implementing a rule requiring companies to disclose the ratio of CEO pay to the median pay of workers, Clayton declined to wade into the debate until he could get more information from SEC staff.
In their questioning, Republicans led by panel chairman Mike Crapo of Idaho said the SEC should help make it easier for companies to raise money, a goal the Trump administration has embraced.
Clayton said that SEC regulations should be clear and lean, saying complexity creates confusion.