Warren named to Senate banking panel

OK, big banks, put on your battle armor and double the number of lobbyists on your payroll. Elizabeth Warren is getting a seat on the Senate Banking Committee.

It was rumored for a while now that the newly minted U.S. Senator would get the committee seat she so coveted. But Wednesday, the announcement is official. And one of the worst fears of the banking industry has been realized.

Warren has been gunning for more banking regulation for years. She pushed for a huge settlement from big banks as they were being investigated for improper foreclosure practices, The Washington Post reports. Greg Sargent calls her "the intellectual godmother of Occupy Wall Street." Her work was so notable that she was asked to help create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

But her efforts with that bureau came at a cost. Congressional Republicans and the banking industry were incensed at the possibility that Warren might lead that bureau, beginning a crusade against her that ended when President Obama declined to name Warren to lead the unit.

Then Warren decided to run for the Senate, and the banks responded by pouring money into the campaign coffers of her opponent, Republican Scott Brown. Warren came away with a stunning victory.

Now, Warren has much more power than she would have had at the bureau. "Boom goes the dynamite," writes one Twitter user. "Elizabeth Warren will want to regulate banks to the point where they can't make a profit and can't offer services to clients," lamented another.

Hedge-fund manager Mike Bergen said on Twitter that the Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) was not liking this news. And that fund did seem to start dropping at about 1 p.m. ET, but it was still up less than 1% for the day. "Let the fireworks ensue," said another Twitter user.

What kind of committee member will Warren be? She certainly has pressure from her supporters to go in with a gun-toting, adversarial bent, the likes of which haven't been seen on that committee in years. But she will have to also be effective, which involves a more nuanced approach at times.

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