Michelle Price and Pete Schroeder

WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – Wall Street banks celebrated the renomination by the U.S. Federal Reserve Jerome Powell Monday. But Democratic Progressives are frustrated that the White House failed to name a new tough regulatory chief they believe will clamp down on banks.

Randal Quarles, the Fed’s head of supervision at the moment, resigned in October from his powerful position overseeing large lenders. He is expected to retire completely from the central bank by the end of this year. Biden indicated that other Fed appointments and the supervisory post would be revealed in early December.

Washington insiders considered Lael Brainard, who was a former Fed Governor and Treasury official in the Obama administration, as the most likely candidate to succeed Quarles. He had opposed his attempts to relax bank regulations.

According to two sources with information, however, she didn’t want the supervisory post and was seeking a higher-ranking role. The White House announced Monday that she would instead become Fed Vice Chair.

This angered progressive groups who wanted the Fed to take a tough stance against Wall Street as well as to intensify efforts to address climate change, improve community lending rules and reduce risk to communities.

The role is open to anyone who can fulfill it.

“It’s problematic,” said Todd Phillips, director of financial regulation at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank. After the announcement, the Senate may take up to February before the Senate confirms the vice chair.

“The fact that it’s been unfilled since early October and it seems like President Biden isn’t going to nominate someone until December means that it’s going to be a long time until that position is filled.”

Brainard opposed efforts by Quarles to use the Fed’s discretion to extend capital and liquidity relief to large lenders, its relaxation of annual health checks for big banks, revisions to the Volcker Rule banning speculative bank investments, and a decision to scrap a requirement for big banks to hold capital against certain swap trades, among other changes.

Even though she had been the lone dissenting voice on such issues, Brainard had acted as a moderating influence on the Fed’s deregulatory agenda, Reuters has previously reported, winning her support from progressive Democrats who likewise worried Quarles’ Wall Street giveaways were increasing systemic risks.

Analysts and lobbyists also cited Sarah Bloom Raskin (a former Fed Governor); Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic, acting Comptroller for the Currency Michael Hsu; U.S Treasury under-secretary Nellie LIANG; Mehrsa Baradaran. Mehrsa Baradaran is a law professor previously considered for the Comptroller position.

While the S&P Bank Index was up 1.72% on Monday’s news, the renomination of Powell, who was strongly criticized by progressives for backing Quarles’ changes, will spur progressives to renew their push for a progressive supervision chief.

Jeremy Kress, a law professor at the University of Michigan and a former Fed official, said the decision to stick with Powell “ups the ante” for Biden to select a strong regulatory lead as soon as possible.