Frankfurt, 29 October. European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde has informed the Governing Council and European Council President António Costa that she will step down on 7 February 2027, the ECB said in a statement.
Her term was due to end in late October 2027, and talk of an early departure had circulated for months, with the World Economic Forum mentioned as a likely next destination. "I leave this institution with a sense of good work done and an ECB that is fit for the future," Lagarde said in a video statement. Her successor will be appointed by the European Council under the procedure of Article 283 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union; Costa said the search would begin immediately.
The former central bank governors of the Netherlands and Spain, Klaas Knot and Pablo Hernández de Cos, are seen as the frontrunners. The resignation came on the day of a rate meeting: the ECB is in a rate-hiking cycle, trying to stop an oil-price shock linked to the Iran war from feeding into other prices and wages.
What it means: Europe's main central bank will change its head while it is raising rates against inflation driven by an energy shock.
Who benefits: Candidates for the post – the appointment opens seven months early. Markets – certainty: the departure date is known in advance, and a replacement will be found before it.
Background: Lagarde, 70, has led the ECB since November 2019; before that she was France's finance minister and managing director of the International Monetary Fund. The decision was announced as France prepares for a presidential election.
