Yahoo Finance Spain Picks Minister Escriva to Lead the Central Bank
(Bloomberg) -- Spanish government minister Jose Luis Escriva was selected as the country’s central bank chief, in time to partake in the euro zone’s likely decision next week to cut interest rates.
Most Read from Bloomberg
The 63-year-old minister for digital affairs won the role after months of political wrangling over who should succeed Pablo Hernandez de Cos, whose term ended in June. Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo made the announcement to a parliamentary committee in Madrid on Wednesday.
One of Escriva’s first tasks will be to fly to Frankfurt for the European Central Bank’s Sept. 11-12 Governing Council meeting. Officials have signaled that they’re likely to deliver a second reduction in borrowing costs at that decision.
The move will bring Escriva back to the institution where he began a long career encompassing a range of public policy roles. He started at the Bank of Spain’s research team in the mid-1980s after graduating from the Complutense University in Madrid with a degree in economics.
From there, he moved on to the European Monetary Institute — the organization which, at the dawn of the euro, became the ECB. He then led its monetary policy division.
From 2004, Escriva spent eight years at BBVA SA, Spain’s second-biggest bank, before serving two years at the Bank of International Settlements and running his country’s fiscal watchdog from 2014 to 2020. He joined the government as an independent, and held the post of minister for pensions between 2020 and 2023, before taking up his current post.
Cuerpo touted his qualifications, telling lawmakers that he has “extensive experience in numerous public and private organizations.” That sentiment was also shared by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who called him “one of the best economist of our country.”
The selection took so long due to political bickering. The opposition People’s Party has repeatedly said it’s against giving the job to a serving minister, with lawmaker Jaime Eduardo de Olano saying on Wednesday that the appointment of Escriva is “inappropriate.”
Sanchez’s government also appears to be breaking with the Spanish convention under which the ruling party picks the central-bank chief and the opposition chooses the No. 2 role.
While there was no announcement on Wednesday on who will succeed Deputy Governor Margarita Delgado — whose term ends this month — Cuerpo told reporters that Escriva get to choose the person, who is set to be another woman.
The central bank’s “renewal process” will be carried out during the “next weeks,” he said. “I hope before end of September.”
Escriva’s predecessor, De Cos, was considered one of the more dovish voices on the Governing Council. His earlier stint at the ECB may make him stand out from colleagues there, hardly any of whom have previously worked at the Frankfurt-based institution.
De Cos was viewed with suspicion by the Socialists because he had been appointed by their opponents. The Bank of Spain had also published reports on the economy that often put him at odds with the government.
The decision to choose a man extends an uninterrupted record of male leadership at the institution. It also negates the chance to further diversify the ECB’s Governing Council.
Out of 26 policymakers there, only two are female, including President Christine Lagarde. All 20 of the national euro-zone central bank chiefs serving there are men.
--With assistance from Thomas Gualtieri, Macarena Muñoz, Joao Lima and Rodrigo Orihuela.
(Updates with plans for deputy governor in 10th paragraph)
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
La justicia no viene al caso en las cortes de inmigración de EE.UU.
Need 100,000 Balloons for a Convention? Here’s the Guy to Call
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
