Rosie Rios

Rosa Gumataotao Rios was born on July 17, 1965, in Hayward, California, the sixth of nine children to Mexican immigrant parents. She worked from her freshman year of high school at the Alameda County Library System, an experience she credits with contributing to her academic success. Rios graduated from Moreau Catholic High School in 1983 and went on to Harvard University, where she earned high honors in 1987 with a double major in Sociology and Romance Languages and Literatures. Before her public service, she began her career as a Commercial Property Underwriter at General Reinsurance Corporation, analyzing risks for commercial investments. Her early career also included roles in economic development, serving as a Development Specialist for the City of San Leandro in 1994, and later contributing to redevelopment efforts in Union City, Fremont, and Oakland, where she was Director of Redevelopment and Economic Development in 2003.

In 2003, Rios became a principal partner at Red River Associates, a consulting firm specializing in economic development. During this period, she worked with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission to restructure the organization for the seismic retrofit of the Hetch Hetchy water system. In 2005, she assisted with the recruitment of the Montreal Expos to become the Washington Nationals. The following year, she joined MacFarlane Partners, a real estate investment firm, as Managing Director of Investments. Her involvement in the Obama campaign in 2008, specifically her strategy to register Latino voters in Virginia, was considered a significant contribution to the election outcome. She was also part of the Treasury-Federal Reserve transition team during the 2008 financial crisis.

Rios was unanimously confirmed by the Senate as the 43rd Treasurer of the United States on July 24, 2009, having been nominated by President Obama in May 2009. She served from August 6, 2009, to July 11, 2016, making her the longest-serving Senate-confirmed Treasury official since November 2008. During her tenure, she oversaw the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and the U.S. Mint, initiated efforts to place a woman’s portrait on U.S. currency, and played a key role in implementing the Build America Bonds program under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. After her time as Treasurer, she launched Empowerment 2026, an initiative focused on recognizing historical American women, and was appointed Chair of the United States Semiquincentennial Commission by President Joe Biden in 2022. She also joined the board of directors at Ripple Labs in May 2021 and became a cast member for the reality series “Unicorn Hunters.”