It is hard to sum up my gratitude and admiration for Chairman Clayton’s leadership of this agency. During his tenure at the SEC, he has focused on bringing together its talented and dedicated staff to make major strides in advancing the Commission’s tri-partite mission of protecting investors, maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and facilitating capital formation. Chairman Clayton made clear from the outset that this mission would guide every part of our work, and then he led us in developing and executing an agenda to effectively carry it out.

With a confident yet caring demeanor, Chairman Clayton led us through not only challenging projects, but also challenging times—a prolonged government shut-down, a global pandemic, a full-time telework posture, and the feelings of social and professional unease that such changes have brought. Through it all, he unfailingly prioritized the well-being of every staff member, as well as the interests of investors, our markets, and our Country. His deep knowledge of securities law and market expertise were evident throughout his tenure, as was his abundant common sense and his well-honed eye for the practical consequences of the regulatory and enforcement decisions we make. His talents were particularly valuable as he helped us navigate the chaotic markets we saw this past spring. Throughout the most volatile of times, Chairman Clayton kept calm, he kept us calm, and through transparency and public engagement, he kept the markets calm.

We have been incredibly lucky to have a person of his experience, integrity, and character serve in our government and at the SEC. I thank him and his incredible family for his service.