DLA Piper announced Michael Silva has joined the firm’s Government Affairs practice in New York as a partner and chair of the financial services regulatory subgroup.

Silva, a leading regulatory and compliance professional in the financial services sector, joins DLA Piper from GE Capital (GECC), where he led a global staff of 700 in overseeing compliance and regulatory activities across nine countries. Notably, he oversaw all of GECC’s interactions with its regulators and advised on all aspects of compliance with the Dodd-Frank Act. Silva also advised on GECC’s first-ever successful de-designation as a systemically important financial institution.

Prior to joining GECC in 2013, Silva spent 21 years with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. There, he served for 10 years as the New York Fed’s lead international lawyer and negotiated high-profile government transactions involving Iran, China, Russia and other sensitive counterparties. Silva was a core member of the New York Fed’s 9/11 Crisis Management team and, during the second Gulf War, Silva served in Baghdad as the Federal Reserve’s advisor to the Central Bank of Iraq. Silva later became chief of staff to then-President Timothy Geithner. In this position, Silva played a key role in coordinating the New York Fed’s response to the 2008 financial crisis. He subsequently was designated as the New York Fed’s senior supervisory officer for a U.S. global systemically important bank. Silva’s other contributions at the New York Fed include leading the process to set the New York Fed’s annual strategic objectives, fostering a leadership development program, and serving as an executive sponsor of several diversity resource networks.

“Mike’s unique, almost unmatched experiences have placed him at the forefront of advising on numerous financial services industry crises in the last 20 years,” said Thomas Boyd, co-chair of DLA Piper’s Government Affairs practice. “He understands how regulators think, interact and approach banks, and he has tremendous credibility with both sides.”

DLA Piper’s New York Managing Partner Richard Hans, who is also global co-chair of the firm’s Financial Services Sector, said: “Mike is widely recognized for his successful ability to advise at the highest levels. He will be a valuable asset to our financial services and government clients in navigating a complex and ever-changing regulatory climate.”