Investing.com -- The U.S. Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as chair of the Federal Reserve on Wednesday, elevating the 56-year-old lawyer and financier to the chairmanship just as the central bank grapples with rising inflation

A Senate vote followed Tuesday’s approval of Warsh’s appointment to the Fed’s seven-member Board of Governors by the Republican-majority body.

Warsh will assume leadership from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whose term ends on Friday. Powell will remain a Fed governor. Fed Governor Stephen Miran will leave his board position to make room for Warsh.

Warsh’s confirmation became certain after Sen. Thom Tillis removed his blockade. Tillis acted after the DOJ announced it had ended a criminal inquiry of Powell related to cost overruns in the Fed’s building renovations. Most Democrats opposed Warsh over concerns he will not maintain the central bank’s independence on monetary policy.

Powell is taking the unusual step of remaining on the Board of Governors. Critics, including several Senate Democrats, have questioned Warsh’s autonomy from the Trump administration.

Warsh has pledged to shrink the Fed’s $6.7 trillion balance sheet, calling its bond holdings "fiscal policy in disguise."

Warsh joins the central bank as policymakers debate interest rate direction. Several central bankers have argued the Fed should consider rate hikes, concerned that inflation is spreading beyond the impact of the Trump administration’s tariffs and oil price increases from the Iran war.