U.S. President Donald Trump said he will name Joseph Otting acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, after Mel Watt's term ends on Jan. 6, 2019.

Otting, a former bank executive, will be the agency's acting director until Mark Calabria, who is Vice President Mike Pence's chief economist, is confirmed as the FHFA's full-time director. The White House nominated Calabria for the position Dec. 12.

Trump appointed Otting to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a federal banking regulator, in 2017. Congress confirmed him in November of that year.

Watt was confirmed by the Senate as FHFA director in 2013.