While the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau still remains without a director, an inspector general of the bureau has been appointed, effective July 25. Mark Bialek will assume the position of inspector general of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors as well as the CFPB.

With more than 30 years in the inspector general community, Bialek most recently served as deputy inspector general of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Congress established the Office of Inspector General as an independent oversight authority within the Board. Under Dodd-Frank, the office was designated as the oversight authority for the CFPB, which is financed by, but autonomous from the Federal Reserve.

The CFPB has still not been appointed a director by President Obama, although staffing of the Bureau has been taking place in advance of the Bureau’s July 21 launch. Speculation has risen as to whether President Obama will appoint Elizabeth Warren, the special advisor tasked with setting up the bureau, as House Republicans and others have spoken against such an appointment.

Written by Elizabeth Ecker