LONDON- The Bank for International Settlements appointed France's central bank chief François Villeroy de Galhau as its new Board chair on Thursday, in a three-year term that will run until 2025.
Villeroy succeeds former Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann who stepped down from
Based in Switzerland, the BIS is dubbed the central bank to the world's central banks, as it handles some of their transactions and holds regular behind-closed-doors meetings for top monetary policymakers to discuss the global economy.
Heading the BIS' Board is viewed as a high-profile role. It is responsible for determining the institution's strategic direction and supervises its management, currently led by former Mexican central bank governor Agust?n Carstens.
The change comes at a key time for top central banks, with many now having to withdraw stimulus and raise interest rates to try and prevent the knock-on effects of the COVID pandemic driving inflation to problematic levels.
(Reporting by Marc Jones, Editing by William Maclean) ((marc.jones@thomsonreuters.com; +44 (0)20 7513 4042; Reuters Messaging: marc.jones.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net Twitter @marcjonesrtrs))
