Adewale O. "Wally" Adeyemo (born May 20, 1981) is an American attorney currently serving as the United States deputy secretary of the treasury.[1] He was the first president of the Obama Foundation and served during the Obama administration as the deputy national security advisor for international economics from 2015 to 2016 and deputy director of the National Economic Council.[2][3]
Wally Adeyemo | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2021 | |
| 15th United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury | |
| Assumed office March 26, 2021 | |
| President | Joe Biden |
| Secretary | Janet Yellen |
| Preceded by | Justin Muzinich |
| President of the Obama Foundation | |
| In office August 1, 2019 – March 25, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Valerie Jarrett |
| United States Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics | |
| In office 2015–2016 | |
| President | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Caroline Atkinson |
| Succeeded by | Daleep Singh (2021) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Adewale Adeyemo May 20, 1981 Ibadan, Nigeria |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | |
Early life and education
editAdeyemo was born to Yoruba parents in Ibadan, Nigeria, and raised in Southern California.[3][4][5] His father was a teacher and his mother was a nurse. He has two younger siblings.[6] After graduating from Eisenhower High School in Rialto, California, in 1999,[7] he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2004 and a Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School in 2009.[3][8]
Early career
editAdeyemo served as the director of African American outreach for the John Kerry 2004 presidential campaign in California and was based in the San Francisco office.[9]
Prior to joining the Obama administration, Adeyemo worked as an editor at the Hamilton Project. Adeyemo then served as senior advisor and deputy chief of staff to Jack Lew in the United States Department of the Treasury.[10] Adeyemo later worked as a negotiator on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. He also served as the first chief of staff of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under Elizabeth Warren.
Later career
editObama administration (2014–2016)
editIn November 2014, Adeyemo was nominated to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for International Markets[11] at the same time that the incumbent assistant Secretary, Marisa Lago, was nominated to be a Deputy United States Trade representative.[12] He appeared before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs in September 2015,[13] but the committee did not advance his nomination to the full Senate. The nomination was withdrawn by President Obama in December 2015.[14]
Adeyemo was instead selected to concurrently serve as Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics and deputy director of the National Economic Council in 2015, serving until 2016. During his tenure, he was the president's representative to the G7 and G20 and held several senior management positions at the Department of the Treasury, including senior adviser and deputy chief of staff, and chief negotiator for the Trans-Pacific Partnership’s provisions on macroeconomic policy.[2]
Out of government
editAdeyemo worked at BlackRock for two years from 2017, serving as a senior advisor, having previously been interim chief of staff for the firm's CEO, Laurence D. Fink.[15][16]
On August 1, 2019, Adeyemo was selected as the first president of the Obama Foundation.[17]
Biden administration
editNomination to Treasury
editIn November 2020, it was announced that Adeyemo would be nominated to serve as United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury in the Biden administration.[18][19] On January 20, 2021, his nomination was submitted to the Senate for confirmation.[20] A hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance was held on February 23, 2021; his nomination was reported out of committee by voice vote on March 3.[21][22] On March 25, 2021, he was confirmed by the Senate, also by voice vote.[20]
Tenure
editOn March 26, 2021, he was sworn into office by Secretary Janet Yellen.[23] Deputy Secretary Adeyemo has been heavily involved in sanctions enforcement in 2022, visiting[24] and speaking with[25] foreign regulators to encourage their cooperation.
On June 2, 2024, Adeyemo wrote an article for the Financial Times headlined "We need to put sand in the gears of the Russian war machine", in the context of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[26]
References
edit- ^ "Obama Foundation Announces Wally Adeyemo as President". Obama Foundation. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
- ^ a b "Adewale Adeyemo: President of Obama Foundation". Leadership. August 11, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
- ^ a b c Hearing before the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (PDF). U.S. Senate. p. 19. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
- ^ "Commencement speaker Wally Adeyemo followed a remarkable road to leadership". April 15, 2021.
- ^ "Obama Appoints 34 Years Old Adewale Adeyemo As Deputy National Security Advisor". Nairametrics. December 16, 2015. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
- ^ Rappeport, Alan (December 1, 2020). "Biden Pick for Treasury's No. 2, a Moderate Voice, Breaks Racial Barrier". The New York Times. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ "Notable Eagles". Eisenhower High School. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Rachlin, Jill. "Wally Adeyemo". Reiss Center on Law and Security. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
- ^ "John Kerry-California Campaign Organization". p2004.org. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
- ^ Ayemoba, Andrea (December 17, 2015). "Obama appoints 34-yr-old Nigerian, Adewale Adeyemo as deputy NSA". Africa Business Communities. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
- ^ "PN2119 — Adewale Adeyemo — Department of the Treasury". U.S. Congress. December 17, 2014. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
- ^ "PN2121 — Marisa Lago — Executive Office of the President". U.S. Congress. December 17, 2014. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
- ^ "Statement By Adewale O. Adeyemo, Nominee For Assistant Secretary For International Markets And Development, Before The Senate Committee On Banking, Housing, And Urban Affairs". U.S. Department of the Treasury. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
- ^ "PN86 — Adewale Adeyemo — Department of the Treasury". U.S. Congress. December 18, 2015. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
- ^ Yeganeh Torbati (January 2, 2021). "Two Biden aides will recuse on BlackRock issues as past ties pose questions". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
- ^ "ABANA | Event Speakers | Wally Adeyemo".
- ^ "Obama Foundation Announces Wally Adeyemo as President". Obama Foundation. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
- ^ "Biden unveils diverse economic team as challenges to economy grow". POLITICO. November 29, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ^ Davidson, Ken Thomas and Kate (November 29, 2020). "WSJ News Exclusive | Biden to Name Rouse, Tanden to Economic Team". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ^ a b "PN79-1 — Adewale O. Adeyemo — Department of the Treasury". U.S. Congress. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ^ "Hearing to Consider the Nomination of Adewale O. Adeyemo, of California, to be Deputy Secretary of the Treasury". U.S. Senate. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ^ "Trade, Treasury nominees advanced by Senate Finance". Roll Call. March 3, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
- ^ "Swearing In of Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo". home.treasury.gov. March 26, 2021. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
- ^ "READOUT: Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo's Visit to Turkey". U.S. Department of the Treasury. June 25, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
- ^ "READOUT: Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo's Meeting with Deputy Finance Minister of Türkiye Yunus Elitas". U.S. Department of the Treasury. August 20, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
- ^ "We need to put sand in the gears of the Russian war machine".
External links
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