Peirce’s Exit Leaves SEC With Two Commissioners

Hester Peirce is scheduled to leave the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on October 2, 2026, reducing the agency’s roster to two commissioners and leaving the SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission with three commissioners combined. SEC Chair Paul Atkins and Commissioner Mark Uyeda will remain at the SEC, while CFTC Chair Michael Selig has been the agency’s sole commissioner since December 2025. The SEC’s departure date for Peirce was announced by the agency, according to the reports. She has served as a commissioner for eight years and is leaving about two months before the end of an 18-month extension of her second term. Her exit will mark only the second time in the SEC’s history that it has operated with two commissioners, the reports said. The agency’s usual complement is five. A White House official said President Donald Trump intends to nominate commissioners to both agencies in the near future. No nominees have been publicly announced, and any selections would still require Senate confirmation. The timing and identities of potential nominees remain unclear.