Here’s a look at the life of Paul Volcker, former chairman of the Federal Reserve.
Personal:
Birth date: September 5, 1927
Birth place: Cape May, New Jersey
Birth name: Paul Adolph Volcker
Father: Paul Volcker Sr., town manager
Mother: Alma (Klippel) Volcker
Marriages: Anke Dening (February 11, 2010-present); Barbara (Bahnson) Volcker (September 11, 1954-June 14, 1998, her death)
Children: with Barbara Volcker: Janice Louise, August 20, 1955; James Paul, May 1958
Education: Princeton University, B.A., 1949; Harvard University Graduate School of Public Administration, M.A., Political Economy and Government, 1951; Attended the London School of Economics, 1951-1952
Other Facts:
Graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University.
Was the first Henry Kaufman Visiting Professor at the Stern School of Business at New York University.
Chairman Emeritus of the Group of 30 Consultative Group on International Economics and Monetary Affairs, Inc.
Timeline:
1949 and 1950 – Summer research assistant at the New York Federal Reserve.
1951-1952 – Rotary Foundation Fellow at the London School of Economics; chooses not to complete doctoral program.
1952 – Works as an economist in the research department of the New York Federal Reserve.
1953-1957 – New York Institute of Finance faculty member.
1955 – Becomes a special assistant in the New York Federal Reserve securities department.
1957 – Resigns from the New York Federal Reserve to become a financial economist at Chase Manhattan Bank.
1962 – Joins the Treasury Department as director of the Office of Financial Analysis.
November 17, 1963 – Is appointed deputy undersecretary for monetary affairs.
1965 – Rejoins Chase Manhattan bank as vice president and director of forward planning.
1969-1974 – Serves as undersecretary of the Treasury for Monetary Affairs.
1974-1975 – Senior fellow at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University.
1975-1979 – President of the New York Federal Reserve.
August 6, 1979-August 11, 1987 – Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
September 1987-June 1990 – Chairs the National Commission on the Public Service. The commission’s purpose is to study ways to attract more able-bodied citizens to public service and away from the private sector.
1987-1996 – Serves as chairman for the law firm Wolfensohn & Company.
August 15, 1996 – Is appointed chair of the Independent Committee of Eminent Persons. The committee is charged with investigating the fate of Jewish assets held between 1933 and 1945 in now dormant accounts held in Swiss banks.
February 2002-November 2003 – Chairs the second National Commission on the Public Service. This commission is tasked with the streamlining and reorganization of federal pay and performance guidelines.
April 2004 – Is appointed by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to chair the Independent Inquiry Committee tasked with investigating the Oil-for-Food Program in Iraq.
2009-2011 – Serves as chairman for the Obama administration’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board, established to provide ways to improve the US economy.
January 21, 2010 – President Barack Obama proposes the Volcker Rule, which bars banks from making trades for their own accounts. It also prohibits them from owning or investing in hedge funds and private equity funds. The rule is meant to refocus banks on their original mission of serving their customers.
2013 – Launches the Volcker Alliance, a nonprofit foundation focused on improving how government implements policy at the federal, state and local levels.
April 1, 2014 – The Volcker Rule goes into effect, with full bank compliance extended until July 21, 2015.
September 30, 2015 – Princeton University says Volcker has donated his public service papers to the university. The documents are mainly from his time as Fed chairman.
