Graduating from Gies College of Business in 1979 – prior to the Economics major transitioning to the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences – put Richard Clarida on a path few could have foreseen and even fewer could accomplish. 

On August 28, Clarida earned Senate confirmation to become vice chairman of the Federal Reserve. The vote cast in his favor, 69 to 26, placed him on the second rung of the central bank’s ladder.

In an article detailing the accomplishment, Bloomberg highlighted his skills in its description of the new appointee.

“These include knowledge of financial markets gained during more than a decade at asset manager Pimco, to insights into how Washington works from his time at the Treasury Department under President George W. Bush,” the report stated.

A professor at Columbia University and global strategic adviser at Pacific Investment Management Co., Clarida became the fourth governor selected to the Fed Board that seats seven. Adding to his wealth of experience, is a Ph.D. in economics and “extensive academic research into monetary policy, currency exchange rates and international capital flows.” These attributes will all play a role in Clarida’s experience with the Federal Reserve, considering its vice chairman “often heads special projects at the request of the chair.”

He also represents an important vote for the chairman on policy and strategy. When the confirmation hearing occurred in May, the Bloomberg article states, “Clarida voiced support for Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s drive to raise rates from abnormally low levels and vowed to ignore political pressure from the president and elsewhere in deciding policy.” During the Senate confirmation, Clarida was confirmed for a term that ends in 2022.  

Read the full Bloomberg (potential pay wall) article here » Read a report from The Washington Post here »