The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has named Tony Alexis, a former assistant U.S. attorney, as the agency’s new enforcement chief.

The news was first reported in the Wall Street Journal this week, and the agency confirmed the appointment to RMD Thursday.

Alexis, who served as an assisted U.S. Attorney for 13 years, was hired by the CFPB in 2012, and succeeds Kent Markus, who has served as enforcement director for the agency since January 2012, according to the report.

Markus was the second-ever enforcement chief, preceded by CFPB Director Richard Cordray, who filled the position in the agency’s early days. Markus has been on medical leave for more than a year, according to sources cited by the WSJ. He will return to the CFPB as senior counsel to Deputy Director Steve Antonakes this year.

The enforcement division of the CFPB has been very active across the industries under its purview, including major enforcement actions brought against auto lenders, payday lenders, credit card companies and mortgage lenders, among others.

Written by Elizabeth Ecker