Jonathan Gould is the new chief counsel for the federal regulator of national banks and thrifts, the agency said Wednesday, bringing his experience from the Senate Banking Committee where he also served as chief counsel.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) made the announcement in a press release. Gould – who started at the OCC Monday – replaces as the permanent chief counsel for the agency Amy Friend (who retired last year).
Gould’s tenure at the Senate Banking Committee, which has chief oversight responsibilities in that body over the OCC, was his second stint with the panel. In between those assignments, the OCC said, he held positions at BlackRock and at Promontory Financial Group, where he served as Promontory’s deputy general counsel. (Blackrock describes itself as “the world’s largest asset manager”; Promontory Financial is a financial services consulting firm, including on regulatory and compliance issues.)
The OCC said that Gould’s experience also extends to service with the law firm Alston & Bird LLP, “advising financial services companies on banking and corporate law, including bank regulation and mergers and acquisitions.” Gould earned his bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and his law degree from Washington and Lee University, the OCC said.