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Chairman Baucus, Ranking Member Grassley, and Members of the Committee on Finance, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today.
I am honored that President Bush has nominated me to serve as Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Markets and, if confirmed, to have the opportunity to work with Secretary O'Neill, the Treasury staff, and others in the Administration to advance the President's economic agenda.
Before proceeding any further, I would like to take this opportunity to thank my grandparents, Cleo Duncan Roseboro and James Benjamin Roseboro Jr., both deceased. It is because of their instilling the values of hard work, perseverance and faith that I am honored to sit before you today.
If confirmed, I look forward to working closely with this Committee, the Senate, and with Members of the House of Representatives on the broad range of issues addressed by the Office of Financial Markets.
The Department of the Treasury plays a fundamental role in our financial markets. The strength and resilience of the markets are of critical importance to global financial stability and confidence. In addition to serving as an advisor to Secretary O'Neill on capital market issues, debt management, and Treasury's response to market events, I especially hope to have the opportunity to work with this Committee to improve the efficiency with which we finance the government's obligations.
My eighteen years of experience in capital markets has given me the opportunity to learn about and actively confront many of the pertinent issues evolving from the globalization of banking and capital markets. Beginning my career with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, I learned the macroeconomic policy and operational issues critical for the development of efficient markets. Later, private sector opportunities, with preeminent global banking and insurance institutions, honed my understanding of the issues of those seeking to transfer financial risk and those choosing to manage it.
In sum, I have been afforded a unique opportunity to understand and actively address many issues evolving in financial markets from the perspectives of regulator, salesperson, trader, and corporate wide risk manager.
Mr. Chairman, thank you again for the opportunity to appear before the Committee. I hope members of the Committee will support me, and I promise to work diligently and with an open mind on all matters that this Committee may wish to raise with this Office. I hope that this will be the beginning of a strong working relationship.
I would like to thank Secretary O'Neill for the confidence he has shown in me by supporting me for this office. I would be pleased to answer any questions that you and other members of the Committee may have.