26/09/2019 (Agence Europe) – On Wednesday 25 September, Eurogroup President Mário Centeno announced that he had received only one candidature - that of the Italian Fabio Panetta - for the position of member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB), replacing the French Benoît Coeuré on 1 January 2020. This candidacy of Mr Panetta, who is currently Deputy Governor of the Banca d'Italia, will be examined at the Eurogroup meeting on Wednesday 9 October in Luxembourg. The next day, the Ecofin Council will decide by qualified majority (at least 72% of the Member States, or 14 out of 19 countries, and 65% of the euro area population) in order to make a recommendation to the European Council, which will take the final decision. The ECB and the European Parliament shall be consulted. France’s Christine Lagarde will succeed Italian Mario Draghi as head of the ECB on 1 November. (MB)