New York Superintendent of Financial Services Benjamin M. Lawsky’s chief of staff will take over leadership of the Department of Financial Services after Lawsky’s departure next week. Mr. Lawsky recently announced that he is leaving the DFS to start his own firm. Anthony Albanese, chief of staff to Benjamin M. Lawsky, will succeed his boss on an interim basis when Mr. Lawsky steps down.
Anthony Albanese, who has worked with Lawsky at the agency since it was created in 2011, will serve as the acting superintendent while New York Governor Andrew Cuomo continues his search for a permanent replacement, Lawsky said in an internal memo to DFS staff. Prior to joining the DFS, Albanese was a partner in a New York law firm.
As Acting Superintendent, Mr. Albanese is the supervisor of all New York State-chartered banks, the majority of United States-based branches and agencies of foreign banking institutions, and all insurance companies in New York. He also regulates all of New York State’s mortgage brokers, mortgage bankers, check cashers, money transmitters, budget planners, and similar providers of financial services. Entities supervised by the Department number more than 3,800, with assets of more than $7 trillion.
The Department was created in October 2011 through the merger of the former New York State Banking and Insurance Departments. Superintendent Lawsky conducted and oversaw the merger of the two agencies. The Department has approximately 1,400 employees, primarily located in New York City and Albany, and has an operating budget of approximately $250 million.
