Lagarde to step down as ECB chief in February

FRANKFURT

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde will step down on Feb. 7, 2027, nearly nine months before her term ends, the bank announced on Oct. 29.

“It has been a great pride and a huge privilege to serve this institution,” Lagarde said in a video posted on X. She said she was leaving an ECB “fit for the future.”

European Council President António Costa said the process to appoint her successor would begin immediately to ensure a smooth transition.

The timing gives EU leaders an opportunity to choose the next ECB chief before France’s presidential election in spring 2027.

Former Dutch central bank governor Klaas Knot and Spain’s Pablo Hernández de Cos, general manager of the Bank for International Settlements, are seen as frontrunners.

EU leaders must also choose replacements for executive board member Isabel Schnabel, who leaves in January, and chief economist Philip Lane, whose term ends in May.

Lagarde has led the ECB since November 2019, having previously headed the International Monetary Fund and served as French finance minister. Her eight-year term was due to end in October 2027.

She did not announce her next role. She has ruled out running for the French presidency but has been linked to the chairmanship of the World Economic Forum, which hosts the annual Davos gathering.

The ECB later kept its key deposit rate at 2.5 percent, warning that rising energy prices could push inflation higher and weaken growth.

Eurozone inflation reached 3.8 percent in September, well above the bank’s 2 percent target.

Policymakers are contending with the energy shock from the Iran war, tighter financing conditions and concerns over France’s public finances.