The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta announced Monday morning that University of Southern California economist Raphael Bostic will serve as the next president of the regional Fed bank, replacing former president Dennis Lockhart.
Bostic’s appointment, approved by the Fed’s Board of Governors in Washington, marks the first time in the 104-year history of the Fed that a regional bank will have a black president. In recent months, congressional Democrats have pressed the Fed system to increase representation of Hispanic and African-American people in its leadership ranks.
As president and CEO of the Atlanta bank, Bostic will be responsible for regulating banks in the region. He also will participate in the monetary policy meetings of the Fed in Washington, and will have a vote in setting interest rates next year.
Previously, Bostic held a Senate-confirmed position in the Obama Department of Housing and Urban Development. After leaving that position in 2012, Bostic, who is openly gay, was credited by gay rights groups for his work on discrimination in housing markets and policies aimed at addressing the housing needs of gay and transgenera people.
Bostic has also worked as an economist at the Fed’s Board of Governors.
He has a Ph.D. in economics from Stanford University, meaning that the tilt of the composition of Fed leadership will continue to tip toward academics, as it has in recent years.
Bostic, whose research and work has focused on housing, is also a member of the board of directors for Freddie Mac.
