James Hennessy

James Hennessy is a Senior Vice President and Senior Advisor in the Supervision Group at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Since 2014, he has led the New York Fed’s Governance and Culture Reform Initiative.

Mr. Hennessy joined the Bank in 1992 as an attorney in the Legal Group. He was the corporate secretary and chief of staff for two of the Bank’s presidents from 1998-2005.  During the 2008 Financial Crisis, he managed the New York Fed’s legal team advising on the rescue and restructuring of AIG. He joined the Supervision Group in 2011 and served as its Interim Head for six months in 2021.

Mr. Hennessy holds a B.A. degree in Philosophy from St. John’s College, an MPhil in Anglo-Irish Literature from Trinity College, an M.S. from Columbia University School of Urban Planning, and a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law. He also holds an Executive Master in Change degree from INSEAD’s program on organizational culture and change management.