European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde has informed the Governing Council and European Council President António Costa of her decision to step down on 7th of February next year, seven months before the end of her term.
Mr. Costa said the process to find her successor would begin immediately. According to an ECB press statement, Lagarde’s successor will be appointed by the European Council following the nomination process outlined in Article 283 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Madam Lagarde, 70, was the first woman to head the ECB when she was nominated in 2019, having previously been the first woman to head the International Monetary Fund.
She had a hard act to follow after Mario Draghi, the Italian economist credited with steering the eurozone through the sovereign debt crisis that began in 2009 with his vow to do “whatever it takes” to preserve the single currency.
Nevertheless, most observers agree that Lagarde’s consensual leadership style unified the central bank’s governing council, which sets interest rates for the 21-nation euro area, and that it has been less riven by disputes than during the Draghi era.
Lagarde “made everyone feel they were part of the same team”, a council member told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity. “Seven years later, that spirit is still there.”
Highlighting her desire to find a middle ground between the ECB’s “hawks” — who favour rate increases — and “doves” who prefer looser policy, she described herself as an “owl”.