Move to take effect on September 12, replacing the outgoing Douglas Watt
Former Credit Suisse executive Cissy Yang (pictured) has joined Fannie Mae as its new senior vice president and chief audit executive.
Effective September 12, Yang will replace J. Douglas Watt, who will retire in November 2022. As chief audit executive, Yang will be in charge of the company’s audit strategy, including internal controls, operational processes, and key risk assessments. She will also serve as a member of Fannie Mae’s management committee and report to the board of directors and administratively to company president and interim CEO David Benson.
Commenting on Yang’s appointment, Benson said they were pleased to welcome a leader with Cissy’s “impressive background and breadth of experience to Fannie Mae’s leadership team.”
“Her contributions will be essential to maintaining Fannie Mae’s strong culture of corporate governance and rigorous internal controls,” he added. “I also want to thank Doug for his leadership and contributions to ensure we have a high-performing internal audit function that executes on Fannie Mae’s mission with a focus on safety and soundness.”
Read next: Fannie Mae reveals financial results
Yang has 25 years of financial services experience under her belt, in which she led multi-disciplinary teams and developed internal control and audit frameworks across large financial institutions. Before Fannie, she was the head of audit for investment banking fixed income, US legal entities, and Americas compliance at Credit Suisse.
“I’m thrilled to be leading a critical component of Fannie Mae’s business strategy and joining such a mission-driven organization,” said Yang. “I look forward to partnering with my colleagues across the enterprise and working with the board of directors and management to drive Fannie Mae’s ongoing audit and key risk assessment strategy in support of a safer and more effective housing finance system.”
