In brief
The WEF board meets on 2 November and could elect Christine Lagarde as chair, according to four sources cited by Reuters. No final decision has been taken.
Lagarde's ECB term is scheduled to end in October 2027. An early exit would let EU leaders pick her successor before the French presidential election in spring 2027.
Isabel Schnabel announced on 24 September that she will leave the ECB in January to join the IMF. Three of the six Executive Board posts are set to be vacant in the short term.
Klaas Knot, former president of the Dutch central bank, and Pablo Hernández de Cos, former Bank of Spain governor, are named in press reports as possible successors to Lagarde.
- 2 NovWEF board meets and could elect Lagarde as chair
- January 2027Annual meeting in Davos, where Lagarde could appear as designated chair
- October 2027Lagarde's scheduled ECB term ends
A board decision on 2 November
The World Economic Forum board, based in Geneva and including Lagarde herself, is due to meet on 2 November. Four people close to the organisation told Reuters that the board could elect the ECB president as its next chair at that session. They spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the matter and said no final decision has been taken. The board has 27 members, and Lagarde has broad support among them, although her election is not certain. If the board does not elect her on 2 November, it could instead set a date for a vote, which would let Lagarde appear as designated chair at the annual meeting in Davos in January.
Timing and the ECB succession
Lagarde's ECB term is scheduled to end in October 2027. An early departure would give EU leaders the chance to choose her successor before the French presidential election in spring 2027, according to Reuters and BFMTV. Sources also suggested a deal could cover two other senior ECB posts. Klaas Knot, former president of the Dutch central bank, and Pablo Hernández de Cos, former governor of the Bank of Spain, are named in press reports as possible successors. Three of the six seats on the ECB's Executive Board are set to fall vacant in the short term. Isabel Schnabel announced on 24 September that she will leave the bank in January to join the IMF.
The board behind the decision
The WEF board is co-chaired by Larry Fink, chief executive of BlackRock, and Andre Hoffmann, vice chairman of Roche. Hoffmann took on the role after founder Klaus Schwab stepped down last year. Other members named in the reporting include IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, Queen Rania of Jordan, Salesforce's Marc Benioff and Siemens' Jim Hagemann Snabe. The board is seated in Geneva, and the annual meeting that could present Lagarde as designated chair takes place in Davos.
Lagarde's position and political reaction
Lagarde has said she intends to stay at the ECB until at least 2027, according to El Periódico. In an interview cited by Handelsblatt, she did not rule out stepping down a few months before her term ends. At a CNN discussion in Bangkok, during IMF and World Bank meetings, she declined to comment on a possible move to the WEF. The ECB has declined to comment, and the WEF had not responded to a request for comment. Marine Le Pen, interviewed by the Financial Times on 15 October and cited by BFMTV, did not directly condemn the prospect of Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Friedrich Merz agreeing on a candidate before Lagarde leaves.
“The Germans have, all the same, somewhat colonised all the important posts within the European Union.”
Le Pen then questioned Macron's negotiating skills. Reuters reports concern in European political circles that talks on her successor could become harder if Le Pen won the French presidency.