The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs will hold a hearing on Aug 4 to expedite the process of naming a chief for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, it said in a statement. Richard Cordray, currently assistant director for enforcement at CFPB, received the nomination from President Obama to head the bureau last month.

"With next week's hearing, I will begin the process of moving Mr. Cordray's nomination forward to confirmation," said Tim Johnson, banking committee chairman in a written statement.

The CFPB started its operations on July 21, handling credit card complaints and calls from distressed homeowners via the Homeowner's HOPE hotline. The bureau expects to increase the center's responsibility to handle complaints on other consumer financial products and services under its jurisdiction in coming months. Although the bureau is off to a strong start to promote equitable and transparent consumer financial marketplace, Johnson said, it still needs a director. “Until it has a director, the CFPB will not be able to use its full powers to protect consumers and level the playing field for community banks and credit unions," he said in the statement.

However, some Senate Republicans may block his confirmation unless the leadership of the bureau is changed into a board instead of a single director. Republicans also want the CFPB's budget to be subject to congressional approval and other regulators to have greater say in the agency's supervision of banks. Earlier, the U.S. Treasury had announced the appointment of Raj Date as the new special adviser to the bureau effective Aug 1 to replace the current adviser, Elizabeth Warren. Under Section 1066 of the Dodd-Frank Act, the bureau will be under the leadership of the Treasury's secretary pending the confirmation of Cordray by the Senate.