On Monday 19 February, the Spanish Finance Minister, Luis de Guindos, was selected by his Eurozone peers to take over the position of vice-president of the European Central Bank (ECB), after his only rival, the Irish central banker Philip Lane, withdrew from the race.
“I will defend the independence of the ECB”, de Guindos pledged, following the official announcement of the backing of the Eurogroup. Thanking his colleagues for their support, he said that he would step down from his...