Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Martin Gruenberg pledged Monday to resign as soon as a successor is confirmed “in light of recent events,” according to a statement posted on the regulator’s website.
“Until then, I will continue to fulfill my responsibilities as FDIC chairman, including transforming the FDIC’s workplace culture,” Gruenberg said in a statement Monday.
Gruenberg came under fire in November after a Wall Street Journal article detailed a toxic culture at the FDIC that tolerates sexual harassment, discrimination and microaggressions. Regulators hired law firm Cleary Gottlieb to review the working environment. The review, Based on testimony from 510 current and former FDIC employeessurfaced this month, revealing a series of bad practices by “too many employees and over too long a period of time.”
Gruenberg testified on Capitol Hill for two days last week, prompting calls from lawmakers for him to resign. Notably, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, reversed his stance on Mr. Gruenberg on Monday, hours before he proposed his resignation.
“After chairing last week’s hearing, reviewing the independent report, and receiving additional support from FDIC staff to the Banking and Housing Committee, I came to one conclusion: That means change is needed,” Brown said Monday. “These changes must start with new leadership, fixing the agency’s toxic culture and putting the women and men who work there and its mission first.”
Brown called on President Joe Biden to “immediately” nominate a new speaker and for “the Senate to act on that nomination without delay.”
“It has been an honor to serve at the FDIC as Chairman, Vice Chairman, and Director since August 2005,” Gruenberg said Monday. “During that time, I have faithfully carried out the FDIC’s vital mission of maintaining public confidence and the stability of the banking system.”
