Europeupdated 1h ago2 min read
Archive photo · 25 March 2022ECB President Christine Lagarde To Step Down February 7, 2027; António Costa Starts Successor Process
9 Other9 Western Mainstream4 Local Western2 Western AlternativePhoto: European Parliament from EU, CC BY 2.0 · Cropped for layout
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Lagarde will resign as ECB president on February 7, 2027. Departure accelerates leadership transition and succession process.
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Lagarde to Exit ECB
Christine Lagarde will leave the European Central Bank on 7 February 2027, the ECB said in a statement published on Thursday. Lagarde told colleagues in a post on X, "I have just informed my colleagues that I will step down as @ECB President on 7 February 2027." The ECB said Lagarde informed the Governing Council and European Council President António Costa of her decision, and it said her successor will be named by the European Council under the procedure in the EU treaties.
“I have been informed by Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, of her intention to step down from her role on 7 February 2027.”
António Costa said the process to appoint the next ECB president would be initiated "today and will proceed without delay" with a view to a timely decision by the European Council acting in its euro area composition. The European Council President also thanked Lagarde for her service since November 2019, saying she led the ECB through "a global pandemic, a war in Europe, energy crises and inflation shocks."
Succession Race and Politics
The leadership transition is set to accelerate a succession race at the Frankfurt-based ECB, with the European Council preparing to name a replacement after consulting the ECB and the European Parliament. Lagarde is only the second president in the ECB's 28-year history to leave early, after Wim Duisenberg. Klaas Knot of the Netherlands and Pablo Hernandez de Cos of Spain are widely seen leading candidates, and the timing matters politically because France holds a presidential election next spring.
The process for naming her successor will begin "today and proceed without delay," and António Costa said the European Council would make a prompt decision. Bloomberg Línea said polls place Marine Le Pen among the favorites for the French presidential elections, while it said the ECB faces elevated inflation sparked by the Iran war and nerves in bond markets.
What the ECB Faces Next
The ECB leadership change arrives as the central bank continues tightening monetary policy, with BigGo Finance saying markets expect the deposit rate to be held at 2.5% on Thursday. The spread between French and German 10-year yields widened to about 178 basis points this month, the highest in nearly 15 years, and Lagarde has said the rise in yields will weigh on both growth and inflation. The yield on 10-year German debt remained one basis point below at 3.36%, while the French bond spread remained steady at 154 basis points.
The winner will oversee interest rates for the 21 euro-area member states and their more than 350 million inhabitants. The European Council President said the appointment process would proceed without delay, while the ECB statement said the Governing Council thanked Lagarde warmly and gave her a long standing ovation.
