President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday announced the selection of former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Jay Clayton to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

The appointment is one of the Department of Justice's major postings and has handled recent high-profile cases, such as that of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.

"I am pleased to announce that Jay Clayton, of New York, the Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission during my first term, where he did an incredible job, is hereby nominated to be the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York," Trump announced.

"Jay is a highly respected business leader, counsel, and public servant. Jay received Engineering and Law degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, and an Economics degree from the University of Cambridge," he continued. "Before chairing the SEC, Jay was a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell, and served on the Management Committee."

Clayton led the SEC from 2017 through 2020.