One of the state's top banking regulators is leaving to run a new consumer protection unit of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in Washington.
Mark Pearce became N.C.'s chief deputy commissioner of banks in 2009. Next month, he will become director of the FDIC's Division of Depositor and Consumer Protection, which will help carry out new responsibilities under the sweeping Dodd-Frank financial reform act.
Pearce developed and managed the N.C. Foreclosure Prevention Project for the N.C. bank commissioner's office. A graduate of UNC Chapel Hill, Pearce previously worked for more than 10 years at the Center for Responsible Lending in Durham.
"I am very pleased to have Mark Pearce join the FDIC," chairwoman Sheila Bair said in a statement. "He brings a wealth of experience in financial sector supervision at the state level with a strong focus on consumer protection. He also is a proven manager and leader having held leadership positions in the public and nonprofit sectors."
Assistant Business Editor Alan M. Wolf joined the N&O in 1999 covering the business of health care. He became an editor in 2001, and helps oversee the paper's daily business coverage and Sunday Work&Money section. He lives in Clayton with his wife and two children. Reach him at 919-829-4572 or