Biden SEC nominee Gary Gensler set for March 2 confirmation hearing

The U.S. Senate has set a date for the confirmation hearing of Gary Gensler, President Joe Biden's nominee to be the next chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

Gensler will face the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs on March 2. The hearing will take place remotely.

Alongside Gensler will be Biden's pick for director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Rohit Chopra. Chopra is currently a commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission.

Allison Herren Lee is serving as acting chairwoman of the U.S. securities regulator while Gensler awaits confirmation. Gensler, a former CFTC chairman, nabbed the Biden nomination in mid-January. He's also led Biden's transition planning for financial industry oversight since November of 2020.

Gensler's been skeptical but interested in cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, based on past public statements. As a former professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management, Gensler served as a senior advisor to MIT Media Lab's Digital Currency Initiative.

The hearing will be webcast at 10:00 a.m. ET.