The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) today announced that Chief Economist Andrei Kirilenko will depart the Commission at the end of 2012 to become Professor of the Practice of Finance at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Sloan School of Management.

“I am both excited for Andrei and saddened that we are losing such an economic talent at the CFTC,” said CFTC Chairman Gary Gensler. “Andrei has made significant contributions to the Commission, particularly with excellent analysis in changing market structures such as algorithmic trading and High Frequency Trading, and to the cost-benefit considerations that are essential as we implement the Dodd-Frank Act.”

“Andrei has done remarkable work at the Commission including his work on the May 6th Flash Crash and continued research on automated trading,” said Commissioner Scott D. O’Malia. “Andrei’s work on market micro structures issues like high frequency trading has been invaluable to the Technology Advisory Committee and the Commission as a whole.”

Andrei Kirilenko began his tenure at the CFTC in May 2008, and was appointed Chief Economist in December 2010. In his capacity as Chief Economist, Dr. Kirilenko has been instrumental in building capacity on cost benefit considerations for the Commission’s rules. He has also been instrumental in using modern analytical tools and methods to improve the Commission’s ability to develop and enforce an effective regulatory regime in increasingly automated, high-speed markets. In 2010, Dr. Kirilenko was the recipient of the CFTC Chairman’s Award for Excellence (highest honor).

Dr. Kirilenko has been very active in engaging with other regulatory agencies, the academic community, markets participants and the general public on important matters for the Commission. He currently chairs two subcommittees of the CFTC Technology Advisory Committee: the Subcommittee on Data Standardization and the Subcommittee on the Automated and High Frequency Trading. He also represents the CFTC at the Systemic Risk Committee and the Systemic Data Committee of the Financial Stability Oversight Council.

“I am really thankful to Chairman Gensler and the Commissioners for the incredible opportunity I’ve been given at the CFTC to bring modern financial theory into public policy,” Dr. Kirilenko said. “I will continue my public service until my departure for MIT, where I plan to use my knowledge of markets and regulation to validate the main tenets of the modern financial theory and educate a new generation of industry leaders.”

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