, Columnist
Christine Lagarde's ECB Top Team Is Running Out of Economists
Benoit Coeure is one of the central bank’s sharpest monetary thinkers. His replacement will need to have similar gifts to support the new president.
Find me some economic heavyweights.
Photographer: Fabrice Coffrini/AFPThis article is for subscribers only.
Christine Lagarde’s nomination as president of the European Central Bank has sparked controversy over whether she’ll be up to the job. But there’s another position to fill at the top of the ECB that’s nearly as important.
Benoit Coeure, a member of the bank’s six-strong executive board, will leave at the end of December after serving an eight-year term. Alongside Peter Praet, the former chief economist, Coeure has been one of the ECB’s sharpest economic minds, helping president Mario Draghi shape and explain his policy decisions.