Lagarde bids farewell to the ECB ahead of schedule: “I’m leaving on 7 February”

Christine Lagarde will step down as President of the ECB on 7 February 2027, almost nine months before the end of her term, which is due to expire at the end of October. She announced this this morning in an email to all staff, in which she wrote that she had informed the Governing Council earlier that day: “This is an important moment for our institution and an emotional one for me,” wrote the outgoing President, who invited her colleagues to watch a video message of thanks from her, because “serving the ECB has been a great source of pride and an enormous privilege”. In the same letter, Lagarde sought to reassure the markets: throughout its history, the ECB "has successfully managed exchange rate fluctuations whilst continuing to fulfil its mandate. This situation is no exception".

The leading candidates to succeed Lagarde are Pablo Hernández de Cos of Spain, former Governor of the Bank of Spain and currently General Manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), and Klaas Knot of the Netherlands, former Governor of the Dutch Central Bank. De Cos is slightly ahead in economists’ expectations, according to the Bloomberg poll of 23 October. The decision will, however, rest with European leaders, and the early departure allows for negotiations on the next ECB president to take place before the French presidential elections in the spring, leaving Emmanuel Macron with a role in the appointment.

Following Frankfurt, there is speculation that Lagarde could take up the presidency of the World Economic Forum, based in Geneva. The WEF is the organisation that brings together heads of state and government, ministers and top executives from major companies in Davos each January. Perhaps this is now more than just speculation. Lagarde already sits on its board, which is due to meet on 2 November. According to Reuters, the WEF board could elect her as president in just three days’ time.