CLAYTON
Jay

• 1. There are several areas of focus for the SEC under Chairman Clayton:
• 2. SEC Strategic Plan—Emphasis on Human Capital
• 3. Responses to Market Developments
• 4. Background, Education and Experience

Jay Clayton was nominated to chair the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on January 20, 2017, by President Donald J. Trump and was sworn in as Chairman on May 4, 2017. Chairman Clayton is a member of the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets, the Financial Stability Oversight Council, and the Financial Stability Board. He also participates on the Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions.

There are several areas of focus for the SEC under Chairman Clayton:

Furthering the interests of America’s Main Street investors by.

Making our capital markets, particularly our public capital markets, more accessible to businesses and investors, ensuring that the United States continues to be the world’s leader in terms of capital formation, effective disclosure and investor protection.

Modernizing and enhancing the regulation and oversight of our equity and fixed income markets, taking into account advances in technology and increased interconnectedness.

SEC Strategic Plan—Emphasis on Human Capital

These areas of focus also are reflected in the Commission’s 2018-2022 Strategic Plan, which also discusses the importance of developing and investing in the Commission’s human capital. A point of emphasis made by Chairman Clayton is that the SEC’s people—its human capital—are the agency’s most important resource. Over the past several years, they have moved the Commission forward in the face of ever-changing markets as well as well-known and emerging risks. A key priority for Chairman Clayton is to continue to invest in and develop the SEC’s human capital. This focus includes prioritizing diversity, inclusion and opportunity for all and led to the issuance of the SEC’s first Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan.

Responses to Market Developments

Under Chairman Clayton, the SEC has addressed unprecedented market developments, including:

• Securities law issues related to distributed ledger technology, cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings;
• Assessing and planning for the potential adverse effects on U.S. capital markets from Brexit and the transition away from LIBOR;
• Cybersecurity and the reliance of companies and our financial system on information technology, and the resulting vulnerabilities to cyberattacks and cyber outages and the need for operational resiliency; and
• Responding to COVID-19’s impact on investors, equity and fixed income markets, and market participants while maintaining operations in a fully remote working environment.

Background, Education and Experience

Chairman Clayton was born at Fort Eustis in Newport News, Virginia, and was raised primarily in central and southeastern Pennsylvania. In his professional career, he has lived in Philadelphia, New York, London, and Washington, DC.

Prior to joining the Commission, Chairman Clayton was a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, where he was a member of the firm’s Management Committee and co-head of the firm’s corporate practice. From 2009 to 2017, Chairman Clayton was a Lecturer in Law and Adjunct Professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Prior to joining Sullivan & Cromwell, Chairman Clayton served as a law clerk for the Honorable Marvin Katz of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. A member of the New York and Washington, DC bars, Chairman Clayton earned a BS in Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania (summa cum laude), a BA and MA in Economics from the University of Cambridge (Thouron Scholar), and a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School (cum laude, Order of the Coif).