Vague is Pennsylvania's next Secretary of the State Department of Banking and Securities.(Photo by New America | CC BY 2.0)
Penn trustee Richard Vague has been nominated by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf to serve as Pennsylvania's next Secretary of the Department of Banking and Securities.
Vague's nomination is currently pending confirmation by the Pennsylvania State Senate, Philadelphia Business Journal reported. If confirmed, Vague will be tasked with regulating more than 200 state-chartered banks and licensing and registering over 18,000 non-bank lenders and 200,000 investment firms and professionals for the department.
Currently, Vague is a managing partner at the venture capital firm Gabriel Investments and sits on Penn's Board of Trustees, according to Pennsylvania Capital-Star. He also serves as the chair for the Philadelphia-based Governor’s Woods Foundation, a private nonprofit organization focused on promoting cultural development and progressive realism within government policy.
At Penn, Vague is the namesake of a professorship at the Perelman School of Medicine. The Richard W. Vague Professorship of Immunotherapy was created in 2012 to help support a faculty member in the field of immunotherapy. The post is currently held by Carl June, who is known for his cancer research and was named one of Time Magazine's 100 most influential people in 2018.
Last year, Vague published a book, A Brief History of Doom: 200 Years of Financial Crisis, through the University of Pennsylvania Press. The book argues that the inflation of private debt, rather than public borrowing, is what fuels the cycle of economic growth and collapse, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Vague was a frequent political donor who gave largely to Republican candidates before the Trump era. He previously floated the idea of running a campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, Pennsylvania Capital-Star reported.
Vague assumed the role of acting secretary on Saturday, Philadelphia Business Journal reported. If confirmed, he will replace outgoing secretary Robin Weissman, who will become the executive director and CEO of the Pennsylvania Housing and Finance Agency, Philadelphia Business Journal reported.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
Donate