Lead: On Friday, the Federal Reserve Board designated the chairs and deputy chairs for the 12 regional Federal Reserve Banks for the 2026 term. The appointments follow the Board’s statutory process for selecting leaders from the three public directors it appoints in each district. The list published by the Board identifies both newly named and reappointed (renamed) chairs and deputies, including leaders from finance, healthcare, manufacturing, nonprofit and higher-education backgrounds. The designations set the leadership roster for the Reserve Banks heading into 2026.
Key Takeaways
- The Board designated chairs and deputy chairs for all 12 Federal Reserve Banks on January 9, 2026, covering New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas and San Francisco.
- Several leaders were “renamed” to continue in their roles, including Pat Wang (New York), Rajiv J. Shah, M.D. (New York, Deputy), Lisa M. Lawson (Richmond), Gregory A. Haile (Atlanta), Jennifer F. Scanlon (Chicago), Claudia Aguirre (Dallas), Russell A. Childs (San Francisco) and Pallavi Mehta Wahi (San Francisco, Deputy).
- Newly named chairs include Lizanne Kindler (Boston), William Lo (Philadelphia), Richard J. Kramer (Cleveland), Lal Karsanbhai (St. Louis), Paul D. Williams (Minneapolis) and Jandel Allen-Davis, M.D. (Kansas City).
- Deputy chairs newly named include Tim Sweeney (Boston), Kisha Hortman Hawthorne (Philadelphia), Fred Hargett (Cleveland), Halsey M. Cook (Richmond), Maurice Smith (Chicago), Gregory A. Heckman (St. Louis), Jay Debertin (Minneapolis), Paul Maass (Kansas City) and Gary C. Kelly (Dallas).
- The appointees represent a mix of sectors—insurance, healthcare, manufacturing, philanthropy, higher education, nonprofit community services and agribusiness—reflecting the statutory aim of broad regional representation.
- The Board’s action is internal to the Reserve Banks’ governance; chairs and deputy chairs lead each nine-member regional board composed of public and banking directors.
Background
Each of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks is governed locally by a nine-member board of directors that mixes private-sector and public representatives. By statute, the Board of Governors in Washington appoints three public directors in each district; those appointees provide a channel for the public perspective in regional governance. Each year, among the Board’s three appointees, one is designated chair and a second is designated deputy chair to lead the local board.
The role of chair and deputy chair on a Reserve Bank board is primarily governance and oversight: they preside over board meetings, facilitate regional outreach and help set agendas for the Bank’s community and business engagement. While Reserve Bank presidents handle monetary-policy implementation and regional economic reporting, board chairs play a continuing role in ensuring the boards fulfill supervisory and community-representation responsibilities. The composition of these local boards is watched by markets and stakeholders for indications of regional priorities and sectoral perspectives.
Main Event
On January 9, 2026, the Board announced named and renamed appointments across all 12 Reserve Banks. In Boston, Lizanne Kindler, executive chair and CEO of KnitWell Group in Hingham, Massachusetts, was named chair, while Tim Sweeney, president and CEO of Liberty Mutual Insurance in Boston, was named deputy chair. In New York, Pat Wang (Healthfirst) and Rajiv J. Shah, M.D. (The Rockefeller Foundation) were both renewed in their roles as chair and deputy chair, respectively.
At Philadelphia, William Lo, CEO of Crystal Steel Fabricators, Inc. in Delmar, Delaware, was named chair, with Kisha Hortman Hawthorne of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia named deputy chair. Cleveland’s board will be led by Richard J. Kramer, former Goodyear chairman and CEO, as chair and Fred Hargett, CFO at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, as deputy.
Across other districts, Richmond retained Lisa M. Lawson as chair and Halsey M. Cook as deputy; Atlanta kept Gregory A. Haile and James O. Etheredge in renamed slots; Chicago’s leadership was renewed for Jennifer F. Scanlon with Maurice Smith as deputy; St. Louis named Lal Karsanbhai chair and Gregory A. Heckman deputy; Minneapolis named Paul D. Williams chair and Jay Debertin deputy; Kansas City named Jandel Allen-Davis, M.D. chair and Paul Maass deputy; Dallas renamed Claudia Aguirre chair with Gary C. Kelly deputy; and San Francisco renamed Russell A. Childs chair and Pallavi Mehta Wahi deputy.
Analysis & Implications
The yearly designation is procedural but meaningful: chairs and deputy chairs shape a Reserve Bank’s engagement with local business, labor, civic leaders and community organizations. The mix of appointees—spanning nonprofit leaders, corporate executives and healthcare administrators—signals the Board’s sustained emphasis on diverse regional perspectives in governance. That diversity can influence the Reserve Banks’ local research priorities, community development initiatives and supervisory interactions.
Because the Board of Governors appoints the public directors and selects chair and deputy chair from among them, these designations reflect both regional candidates and the Board’s assessment of who can best lead district governance in the coming year. Reappointments (renamings) provide continuity; new appointments can mark shifts in emphasis—for example, greater attention to workforce development, healthcare sector dynamics, or manufacturing supply-chain concerns depending on directors’ backgrounds.
Practically, these leadership roles do not change monetary policy decisions directly; policy remains the purview of the Federal Open Market Committee and Reserve Bank presidents. However, the chairs and deputy chairs can affect the tone and focus of regional intelligence that informs policy deliberations. Observers looking for regional sentiment ahead of policy meetings may read these leadership slates for clues about local priorities and outreach strategies.
Comparison & Data
| Reserve Bank | Chair (2026) | Deputy Chair (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Boston | Lizanne Kindler — Executive Chair & CEO, KnitWell Group (Hingham, MA) | Tim Sweeney — President, CEO & Chairman, Liberty Mutual Insurance (Boston, MA) |
| New York | Pat Wang — President & CEO, Healthfirst (New York, NY) | Rajiv J. Shah, M.D. — President, The Rockefeller Foundation (New York, NY) |
| Philadelphia | William Lo — CEO, Crystal Steel Fabricators, Inc. (Delmar, DE) | Kisha Hortman Hawthorne — SVP & COO, Care Network & Behavioral Health, CHOP (Philadelphia, PA) |
| Cleveland | Richard J. Kramer — Former Chairman, CEO & President, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (Akron, OH) | Fred Hargett — EVP & CFO, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (Pittsburgh, PA) |
| Richmond | Lisa M. Lawson — President & CEO, The Annie E. Casey Foundation (Baltimore, MD) | Halsey M. Cook — President & CEO, Milliken & Company (Spartanburg, SC) |
| Atlanta | Gregory A. Haile — CEO, Upwardly Global; Former President, Broward College (Fort Lauderdale, FL) | James O. Etheredge — Former CEO, Accenture North America (Atlanta, GA) |
| Chicago | Jennifer F. Scanlon — President & CEO, UL Solutions Inc. (Northbrook, IL) | Maurice Smith — Chairman, President & CEO, Health Care Service Corporation (Chicago, IL) |
| St. Louis | Lal Karsanbhai — President & CEO, Emerson Electric Co. (St. Louis, MO) | Gregory A. Heckman — CEO, Bunge Global SA (Chesterfield, MO) |
| Minneapolis | Paul D. Williams — Founder & Principal Consultant, Williams Community Supports; Retired CEO, Project for Pride in Living (Minneapolis, MN) | Jay Debertin — President & CEO, CHS, Inc. (Inver Grove Heights, MN) |
| Kansas City | Jandel Allen-Davis, M.D. — President & CEO, Craig Hospital (Englewood, CO) | Paul Maass — CEO, Scoular (Omaha, NE) |
| Dallas | Claudia Aguirre — President & CEO, BakerRipley (Houston, TX) | Gary C. Kelly — Chairman Emeritus, Southwest Airlines (Dallas, TX) |
| San Francisco | Russell A. Childs — CEO & President, SkyWest, Inc. (St. George, UT) | Pallavi Mehta Wahi — Chair, Western U.S. Strategic Growth & Seattle Office Head, Arnold & Porter (Seattle, WA) |
The table summarizes the Board’s designations, preserving full names, primary titles and home cities as provided in the Board’s announcement. This roster shows sectoral variety that the Board seeks in regional governance.
Reactions & Quotes
Below are brief excerpts from the Federal Reserve Board announcement and context that clarify the legal and administrative basis for the designations.
“By law, the Board of Governors in Washington appoints three of these directors to represent the public in the district and each year designates one of its appointees as chair and a second as deputy chair.”
Federal Reserve Board (official press release)
This sentence explains the statutory mechanism behind the selections: the Board of Governors appoints public directors and then designates leadership among them annually. That choice is administrative but important for local governance continuity.
“Following are the names of the chairs and deputy chairs designated by the Board for 2026.”
Federal Reserve Board (official press release)
The press release’s list is the authoritative source of the names and titles. Stakeholders and the public rely on the Board’s published roster when assessing regional representation and outreach priorities.
Unconfirmed
- There is no public record in the announcement of the Board’s internal criteria or deliberations used to select which appointees were designated chair or deputy chair for 2026.
- Whether any of the newly named or renamed chairs will prompt immediate changes in their Reserve Bank’s outreach or research emphasis is not confirmed by the Board’s statement.
Bottom Line
The Board of Governors’ January 9, 2026 designations establish the leadership teams for the 12 Reserve Bank boards for the coming year, blending continuity and some new appointments across sectors and regions. While procedural, these designations matter for how each Reserve Bank organizes regional outreach, supervises local financial institutions and gathers economic intelligence.
Observers should view the roster as a governance update rather than a signal of imminent monetary-policy shifts; policy decisions remain the remit of the FOMC and Reserve Bank presidents. Still, the professional backgrounds of chairs and deputies can influence district priorities and the topics emphasized in regional reports to policymakers.