Biography
Avy Mallik was appointed by Governor Newsom in late 2022 to serve as General Counsel for the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation, which regulates financial services in California. In his position, he oversees the Legal Division (which includes the Securities Regulation Division), the Crypto Asset Support Unit (implementing California’s Digital Financial Assets Law), and the Broker-Dealer and Investment Adviser Division of DFPI. Avy has testified on policy issues before the state legislature, including at the Joint Hearing Assembly Banking and Finance and Senate Banking and Financial Institutions related to Digital Assets in February 2023, and another Joint Hearing on Silicon Valley Bank and the future of bank regulation.
Previously, Avy served as Director of Fintech Policy for the Financial Services Committee at the U.S. House of Representatives, leading the Committee's work on digital assets, fintech supervision, and the use of artificial intelligence in the financial services. He managed Congressional hearings on such topics as stablecoin oversight, central bank digital currencies, digital wallets, algorithmic bias, and led on Congressional reports and investigations related to fintech products and services. He also served as Senior Counsel for the Committee’s Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions Subcommittee, which oversaw prudential and market regulators at the state and federal level, and liaised extensively with banks credit unions, and nonbank fintechs. Prior to Congress, Avy served as an Assistant Attorney General for the Consumer Protection Division of the Office of the Maryland Attorney General. Avy is a graduate of Reed College and Georgetown Law, and is based in the San Francisco Bay Area.