By Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission Chairman Elisse Walter said Friday she is unsure how
long she will stay at the agency after Mary Jo White is
confirmed by the Senate as the SEC's new chief.
"I will certainly be here until the new chairman gets
confirmed and comes onboard," Walter told reporters on the
sidelines of a meeting of the SEC's Advisory Committee on Small
and Emerging Companies. "I have sort of decided not to think
about it right now. That may be a very short time. It may be a
very long time."
"What I want to think about is what work I have to do when I
get up in the morning. The other is something I will leave as a
decision for later," she added.
Walter took the helm of the SEC in December after Mary
Schapiro stepped down as chairman.
She is able to continue serving at the SEC as a commissioner
until the end of the year. Were she to stay longer, the U.S.
Senate would need to reconfirm her.
Walter has never publicly discussed her future ambitions,
though it was widely believed she was among those being
considered by the White House as a longer-term candidate to
chair the agency.
Last week, however, President Barack Obama announced that he
was nominating White, a former federal prosecutor, to head the
SEC.
White, who as U.S. Attorney for Manhattan prosecuted
terrorists and mob bosses as well as white-collar criminals,
does not have much SEC policy experience. But she spent her
recent years in private practice representing some major players
in the financial crisis, and her husband, John White, previously
served as the director of the SEC's corporation finance
division.
White's nomination has so far drawn little opposition,
likely meaning that she will be speedily confirmed.
Until White is confirmed, Walter said, the SEC would press
forward on a number of initiatives, including an agreement on
reforms for the money market fund industry, a proposal for how
over-the-counter derivatives rules will apply overseas, and a
rule to lift a long-time ban on general advertising in private
placements.
On the sidelines of Friday's meeting, SEC Republican
Commissioner Daniel Gallagher said the agency is making progress
on money market fund reforms and that commissioners are
reviewing a "term sheet," or an early-stage document outlining a
potential course of action.
"I think there is a path forward developing," Gallagher
said.
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