Eurogroup sets Friday deadline for ECB president nominees

Euro zone governments have until Friday, November 6, to nominate candidates to replace Christine Lagarde as president of the European Central Bank. Finance ministers will look at the names when they meet on November 9, a Eurogroup spokesperson said on Tuesday. The deadline formally opens the race for the top job at the bank. Lagarde said last week that she will leave on February 7, 2027, about nine months before her eight-year term ends.reuters.com+1

How the appointment works

Lagarde wrote to European Council President António Costa, and the Council of the EU then "initiated the procedure for appointing a successor," the spokesperson told Euronews. Eurogroup President Kyriakos Pierrakakis, who is also Greece's finance minister, "has called on member states to send their nominations by Friday 6 November," the spokesperson said. A candidate needs support from at least 16 of the 21 euro zone countries, and those countries must make up at least 65% of the bloc's population. EU leaders make the final decision after the European Parliament and the ECB's Governing Council give their opinions.euronews.com

When she announced her departure, Lagarde said leaving would let her speak on issues beyond monetary policy. "I don't think that I can remain neutral," she said. She will chair two more rate-setting meetings, in December and February.euronews.com

Two frontrunners

Pablo Hernández de Cos and Klaas Knot are widely seen as the leading candidates. Hernández de Cos is general manager of the Bank for International Settlements and ran the Bank of Spain from 2018 to 2024. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez endorsed him in September. Knot led the Dutch central bank for 14 years until 2025, and Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten called him a "perfect fit". Other names that have come up include former Bank of France governor François Villeroy de Galhau and Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel.irishtimes.com+1

A wider board reshuffle

The presidency is one of several posts being negotiated. Isabel Schnabel leaves the Executive Board on January 3 to join the IMF, and chief economist Philip Lane's term ends in May. That means three of the board's six seats will change within five months, so governments are expected to negotiate the jobs as a package. Central Bank of Ireland Governor Gabriel Makhlouf has said Lane would be a "great" candidate for president. The Irish Times noted that his odds remain long, and that the big member states will drive the choice at a time when bond markets are unsettled, especially over France.irishtimes.com+1