Nicu Marcu, validated by Parliament as head of the ASF

Nicu Marcu, the only candidate for the position of president of the Financial Supervision Authority (ASF), was voted, yesterday, by the reunited plenary of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate for the remainder of the term until 2023 at the helm of the regulator.

In the committees on Tuesday, Marcu received 51 votes "in favor", 6 "against" and 1 abstention, in line with the parliamentary agreement on the vacant positions in several institutions subordinated to the Parliament. Yesterday, the proportion was largely unchanged, and the current ASF president was validated with 340 votes "in favor" and 20 "against".

During the hearing, Marcu told lawmakers that he would compile and analyze the internal scandals and those that appeared in the media in connection with the activity of ASF in the stock market and insurance sectors. As such, the new president of the ASF is set to be summoned again before the Economic Commission of the Senate, in a month, to present a plan for the recovery of the activity of the regulator, whose image was heavily affected this year and the last.

Marcu benefited both from the PNL's support, but also from the tacit support of the PSD, given that one of Marcu's supporters inside the Social Democratic Party is Paul Stănescu, the head of the Olt organization. The two are linked by an older friendship, according to some sources. He was also supported by ALDE, as well as by Victor Ponta, who promised to support Marcu in exchange for Ilie Sârbu, Ponta's father-in-law, receiving a new term at the Court of Auditors.

Also, during the hearing, Marcu said that he supports a law that places a two years ban on any sale of state holdings in state companies, stating that this is a "prudent" measure.

The position of ASF president is one of the most lucrative, with a wage of 68000 lei / month.

Also yesterday, Mircea Man (PNL), Marian Neacşu (ProRomania) and Valeriu Steriu (PSD) were appointed as executives of the National Energy Regulatory Authority (ANRE). The three were elected by the Industry Commission without any hearing, given that the number of candidates for the three vacant positions was close to 40. Mariana Sofia Moţ (PNL) and Toni Greblă (PSD), former judge with the Constitutional Court, were elected by Parliament on the Legislative Council.

The plenary session also voted yesterday on some changes in the parliamentary commissions for the oversight of the SRI and SIE: deputy Eugen Bejinariu (PSD) took over the presidency of the SRI Oversight Commission, while deputy Cezar Preda (PNL) was elected as its vice-president. Deputy Mitică Marius Mărgărit (PSD) was also elected as a member on the commission, while deputy Vlad Bontea (PSD) was appointed on the commission for the oversight of the activity of the SIE.