**Lael Brainard** is an American economist who has held prominent positions in U.S. economic policy and financial regulation.[2] Born January 1, 1962, she earned a B.A. with university honors from Wesleyan University in 1983 and received an M.S. and Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University in 1989, where she was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship.[1] Brainard's career spans academia, the private sector, and government service. She worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company and served as Assistant and Associate Professor of Applied Economics at MIT's Sloan School of Management from 1990 to 1996.[1] From 2001 to 2008, she was Vice President and Founding Director of the Global Economy and Development Program at the Brookings Institution, holding the Bernard L. Schwartz Chair.[1] In government, Brainard served as Deputy National Economic Adviser and Deputy Assistant to President Clinton, and as his personal representative to the G-7/G-8.[1] From 2010 to 2013, she was Undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Treasury for International Affairs, where she managed responses to the euro area crisis and currency relations with China, earning the Alexander Hamilton Award.[2] Brainard took office as a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in June 2014.[1] She was sworn in as Vice Chair in May 2022 and resigned from the Federal Reserve on February 18, 2023, to become Director of the National Economic Council.[2] In this role, she also chaired the White House Competition Council.[2] Throughout her career, Brainard has contributed to resolving major financial crises, including the Asian financial crisis, euro area debt crisis, COVID-19 pandemic response, 2023 regional banking crisis, and 2024 debt limit negotiations.[3] The New York Times has described her as "America's top financial diplomat."[6] She currently serves as a distinguished fellow at Georgetown University's Psaros Center for Financial Markets and Policy and senior fellow at Harvard Kennedy School.[5]