Paul Munter, who has served as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s acting chief accountant since January 2021, has been appointed to the job permanently, the SEC announced.

He will continue to lead the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) and serve as the principal adviser to the SEC on accounting and auditing matters. He also will be responsible for assisting the SEC in overseeing the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB).

“I’ve valued Paul’s counsel, judgment, and clear accounting advice in his service as acting chief accountant, and I thank him for continuing in the role as chief accountant,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “The Office of the Chief Accountant performs critical work to ensure that investors have access to the highest-quality financial disclosures from public companies. Under Paul’s leadership, I am confident that the office will continue in advancing this mandate.”

Munter joined the SEC in 2019 as deputy chief accountant, leading the OCA’s international work. Before coming to the agency, he taught accounting at the University of Colorado Boulder after retiring as the lead technical partner for KPMG’s international accounting and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) activities.

Munter earned his Ph.D. in accounting from the University of Colorado, and his B.S. and M.S. degrees in accounting from Fresno State University. He is a CPA in Colorado, New York and Florida.