Christine Lagarde resigns as president of the European Central Bank

BrusselsThe President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, resigned this Thursday from the institution based in Frankfurt. The former Minister of Economy and Finance of France will leave the position on February 7, 2027, nine months before her term ends, which was scheduled for October of the same year. Lagarde announced her withdrawal as head of the institution in a video on the social network X, in which she thanked all the people who have accompanied her during the last seven years for their support.

For months, economic media outlets had been echoing the possibility that Lagarde would leave the ECB before exhausting her term. In this way, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz will be able to influence the election of her successor before the French presidential elections of 2027, given a possible breakthrough of the far-right at the Élysée. Now, speculations suggest that the French economist's destination could be the World Economic Forum based in Davos.

The President of the European Council, António Costa, thanked her for her work as president of the organization since November 2019. "Throughout her tenure, she has led the European Central Bank with a firm sense of duty and responsibility. Europe has benefited from her leadership in times of uncertainty and from her indestructible commitment to the European project. In the midst of a global pandemic, a war in Europe, energy crises, and inflationary shocks, she has exercised the office with firmness and determination, and has contributed to preserving the stability and resilience of the euro area," he stated in a press release. The European Council will appoint her successor.

Among the possible candidates to replace her is Pablo Hernández de Cos, who has the public support of the Spanish government. President Pedro Sánchez confirmed at the end of September that he supports a candidacy led by him, and praised his "necessary capacity, knowledge, and leadership."

Aside from Hernández de Cos, other names that appear in the running are the Dutchman Klaas Knot—who directed the central bank of the Netherlands between 2011 and 2025 and was part of the ECB governing council for fourteen years—and the German Joachim Nagel, president of the Bundesbank since 2022.

Lagarde's decision comes at a key moment for the ECB, immersed in a cycle of interest rate hikes to try to curb prices, pushed upwards due to the energy crisis in the Middle East. At the same time, the financial institution is facing an increase in public bond yields, especially in France, where debt has reached twenty-year highs and fueled doubts about the sustainability of its public finances.

The still president of the ECB will give a press conference this noon to announce her decision on interest rates, and it is expected that she will delve into the causes of her hasty departure.