The President of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, announced, on Thursday 29 October, that she would step down early, on Sunday 7 February 2027 rather than 31 October 2027, ending months of speculation.
“I have just informed my colleagues that I will step down as ECB President on 7 February 2027”, she said in a video on X, appearing with dressings on her face following “a minor surgical procedure earlier this week”. “It has been a source of great pride to serve this institution”, she added, thanking everyone who had supported her over the past seven years.
After the meeting of the Governing Council, which decided to leave the ECB’s key interest rates unchanged (see EUROPE 13971/2), Ms Lagarde said she was fully confident in the EU institution’s ability to uphold “the principle of continuity”, noting that there were “candidates far better than [her]”. The institution has “never failed” in its mission to maintain price stability at 2% in the euro area, she stressed.
In office since November 2019, Christine Lagarde will chair two more Governing Council meetings after Thursday’s meeting, on 17 December 2026 and 4 February 2027, at which monetary policy decisions may be taken.
Following the announcement, tributes poured in on social media.
Speaking from Montreal, the European Council President, António Costa, said Ms Lagarde had led the ECB with “a strong sense of duty and responsibility”. “Through a global pandemic, a war in Europe, energy crises and inflation shocks, she has provided a steady and determined stewardship, helping to safeguard stability and the resilience of the euro area”, he added.
For the Eurogroup President, Kyriákos Pierrakákis, Ms Lagarde’s presidency “has only strengthened the confidence in the single currency”.
“You have championed deeper financial integration at home. And on the world’s stage, you embody what every currency needs: trust and authority”, the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, said in tribute. She hoped that “many more women will follow in [Ms Lagarde’s] footsteps”. Ms Lagarde is a former French Finance Minister and Managing Director of the IMF.
Package of appointments. A period of negotiations between euro area countries now begins to agree a package of appointments to several positions on the ECB’s Executive Board.
In addition to replacing Ms Lagarde, euro area countries have already launched a procedure to replace Germany’s Isabel Schnabel, who is due to leave for the IMF in early 2027. Originally set for 28 October (see EUROPE 13955/16), the deadline for nominations has been pushed back to 27 November, the day of the extraordinary European summit devoted to the EU’s post-2027 budget. Ireland’s Philip Lane is also due to leave his post as ECB Chief Economist next May.
Names being mentioned as possible successors to Ms Lagarde include Spain’s Pablo Hernández de Cos, who heads the ‘Bank for International Settlements’, and the Netherlands’ Klaas Knot, former Governor of the Dutch central bank.
Mr Costa said the procedure to replace Ms Lagarde would begin “that very day” (Thursday 29 October – editor’s note) and proceed “without delay”, with a view to a decision by the European Council “in due course” at a Euro Summit.
Under the Treaty, the Eurogroup prepares a recommendation from the EU Council, which is then forwarded to the European Council. The latter will decide by reinforced qualified majority of the euro area countries (the support of at least 16 countries representing at least 65% of the Union’s population), after consulting the ECB and the European Parliament.
Freedom of speech. The change in timetable allows the French President, Emmanuel Macron, to influence the appointment of the next head of the Frankfurt-based monetary institution, rather than leaving that responsibility to his successor after the French presidential election in spring 2027.
Some also believe that Ms Lagarde intends to become involved in the election campaign in France. She has previously stressed the need for a “pro-European voice” to be heard, particularly during the presidential campaign.
Speaking to the press, the outgoing President said she felt the need to regain “the freedom to speech” on matters other than monetary policy, a freedom that her current role denies every member of the ECB’s Executive Board. She wants, in particular, to defend principles dear to her, such as “truth”, which she finds is “very often damaged, contradicted by misrepresentations”. She gave no specific examples.
Ms Lagarde concluded: “There are things I can say. Will people listen or not? It’s another story”. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)