Speculation surrounding who will fill the numerous empty Federal Reserve Board seats peaked late last week, with two names emerging from the fog.

Citing “people with direct knowledge of the decision”, the New York Times reported Randall Quarles, a US treasury official from the George W Bush era, and Marvin Goodfriend, professor of economics at Carnegie Mellon University, are likely to be chosen for open seats on the board of governors.

Both men have in the past criticised the US central bank’s