President Obama will nominate Fannie Mae Chief Executive Herb Allison to run the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the Wall Street Journal is reporting. Allison will replace Neel Kashkari, who was tapped by President Bush and has continued in the post until a replacement is found.
Allison came on as CEO of Fannie in September, after the federal government took over the company.
Mr. Geithner has been searching for months for someone to run TARP. Various candidates either have not made it through the vetting process or have pulled out of consideration. Last month, the leading candidate, hedge-fund manager Frank Brosens, withdrew for personal reasons.
Mr. Allison has been on the short list from the beginning. His selection was complicated by several factors, including the need to replace him at Fannie, people familiar with the matter say. He spent most of his career at Merrill Lynch, eventually serving as president and COO. He became chairman of TIAA-CREF in 2002. As Fannie’s CEO, he opted to take no salary or bonus.
Obama may announce the decision sometime this week.