- Incoming US President Donald Trump has appointed Jay Clayton to serve as the Attorney for the Southern District of New York , a role considered by legal experts to be one of the most powerful in the justice department.
- Jay Clayton was also the Trump-appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission SEC, where he served from May 2021 until December 2020, before being replaced by Biden-nominated Gary Gensler.
- The new US Attorney for Manhattan will succeed Damian Williams, who is known for convicting Sam Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison for mismanaging over 8 billion in customer assets on the FTX crypto exchange.
- Gary Gensler is expected to step down from his role as the chairman of the SEC in the coming days.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Jay Clayton, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission SEC , as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Legal experts consider the role to be one of the most powerful within the Department of Justice DoJ.
Trump spoke very highly of Clayton in a November 14 announcement on his social media platform Truth Social, noting that the former SEC boss is a well-respected "business leader, counsel, and public servant".
Trump Appoints Former SEC Chair Jay Clayton As The Attorney For Wall StreetClayton served as the SEC Chairman between May 2017 and December 2020, a role he was appointed by Trump during his first stint as President. He is a partner at the New York-based law firm Sullivan Cromwell, specializing in major corporate mergers and acquisitions.
Clayton returned to the firm in 2021 and was succeeded at the SEC by Biden-appointed chairman Gary Gensler, who is considered a public enemy by the crypto community. He also serves on the board of Apollo Global Management, a private equity firm, and recently joined the advisory board of the digital asset platform Fireblocks.