Governor nominates top New York financial regulator

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday nominated Adrienne Harris to be the next superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services.

Ms. Harris, if confirmed by the Senate, will become the state’s top financial regulator tasked with overseeing the banking and insurance industries and their compliance with state laws as New York works to rebuild its economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ms. Harris was most recently general counsel, chief business officer and adviser at States Title Inc., now Doma Holdings Inc., which provides title insurance and settlement services in a number of states.

Ms. Harris previously served President Obama as special assistant to the president for economic policy, as part of the National Economic Council, and before that as senior advisor to Acting Deputy Secretary and Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Mary Miller and Deputy Secretary Sarah Bloom Raskin.

“From her time working with President Obama to help the nation forge a path forward in the aftermath of 2007’s Great Recession to her vast experience in the private sector helping ensure companies of all sizes act as good corporate citizens, there is no one better suited to help lead this state's economy forward and I, for one, cannot wait to get to work with Adrienne to deliver real results for the people of this great state,” Gov. Hochul said in the statement Tuesday.

Ms. Harris replaces Linda Lacewell, who resigned effective Aug. 24, and takes over from Shirin Emami, who was named acting superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services.