Is Robinhood CLO Dan Gallagher Donald Trump’s Pick for SEC Chairman?

The contendership for the next U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission(SEC) Chairman, gets competitive as Donald Trump team reportedly pitches Robinhood CLO, Dan Gallagher for the role. Major contenders in the mix for SEC chair previously included SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda and ‘Crypto Mom’ Hester Peirce.

According to latest reports, newly elected President Trump is considering Dan Gallagher, a Republican SEC commissioner from 2011 to 2015, who is currently chief legal and compliance officer at Robinhood, as the next SEC Chair.

The reports read, “Gallagher, who is a popular pick among cryptocurrency executives who donated millions of dollars to Donald Trump’s Republican campaign, is the front-runner at this point, although the discussions are fluid, two of the people said.”

Sources reveal that Trump’s transition team is creating a shortlist of candidates for each financial agency, which they will recommend for Trump’s consideration.

Not just Gallagher, Paul Atkins, a former Republican SEC commissioner and CEO of consultancy Patomak Global Partners, features in the short list. Atkins had served on Trump’s transition team in 2016, making him a strong prospect for the SEC chair position. The SEC short list also includes Robert Stebbins, a partner at law firm Willkie Farr.

Two people close to the matter said that the process could take a few weeks, and it is still too early to say anything definitive.

We previously reported that Trump is expected to bring in more newcomers, even though SEC Commissioner and Republican, Mark Uyeda was considered to have a higher chance of becoming SEC chairman compared to Hester Peirce.

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