Christine Lagarde to step down as ECB president nine months ahead of schedule

Christine Lagarde is to step down as European Central Bank president in February, nine months before her eight-year term expires in October 2027, after months of speculation about an early exit.

Her departure opens the door to one of the biggest leadership reshuffles in the ECB’s 28-year history, just as the central bank faces a resurgence in inflationary pressures.

Lagarde’s tenure has been shaped by the worst pandemic in a century, the bloodiest war in Europe since 1945, the biggest inflation shock in a generation and a trade war with the US.

Earlier this year, Lagarde, 70, admitted that she had believed she would only serve in Frankfurt for five years rather than eight when she agreed with French President Emmanuel Macron to do the job.

She is the second president in the 28-year history of the ECB to resign early. Its first head, Wim Duisenberg, left after five years following a political understanding at the onset of the monetary union.

Lagarde has been in talks to chair the World Economic Forum.

The Dutch government is backing former Dutch central bank governor Klaas Knot as Lagarde’s successor, while Spain is supporting Pablo Hernández de Cos, general manager of the Bank for International Settlements and former governor of the Bank of Spain.

ECB executive board member Isabel Schnabel will leave her role one year early in January to take a senior position at the IMF. ECB chief economist Philip Lane’s term will expire in May.

Any new executive board member needs the support of at least 16 of the 21 countries using the euro, representing 65 per cent of the bloc’s population.- Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2026

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