U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's choice to head the Securities and Exchange Commission is a veteran Wall Street regulator who may end up leading a reorganization of the highly-criticized agency.
Mary Schapiro has 20 years of regulatory experience - first as an SEC commissioner, and later as the head of a parallel agency - the Commodity Futures Trading Commission - that oversees markets for commodities, such as oil.
Her experience with both agencies could facilitate a merger of the two entities - a move supported by some lawmakers. Mr. Obama has not explicitly endorsed the merger, but said Thursday that there is a potential need to consolidate regulatory agencies.
Schapiro is currently chief executive of a self-regulatory group for financial firms. Her organization, like the SEC, has drawn questions from lawmakers about whether it failed to properly regulate financial institutions and protect investors.
A political independent, Schapiro was appointed as a commissioner of the SEC by Republican presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. She was briefly named the acting chairwoman of the agency by former Democratic President Bill Clinton.