Christine Lagarde pledged to see out her presidency at the European Central Bank following speculation over an early departure to lead the World Economic Forum in Switzerland.
“I’m fully determined to deliver my mission and I’m determined to complete my term,” Lagarde told reporters Thursday in Frankfurt when asked about a media report that she’d discussed a premature end to her presidency with WEF founder Klaus Schwab in April. “I regret to tell you that you’re not about to see the back of me.”
Last week, the Financial Times cited Schwab as saying that Lagarde had discussed cutting short her term to succeed him as chairman. The WEF is known for its annual Davos meeting in the Swiss Alps.
Previously, Bloomberg had reported that the WEF had held internal discussions on a potential Lagarde appointment, according to people familiar with the matter. Lagarde’s term runs until October 2027 and is non-renewable.
Lagarde was asked about those talks but didn’t directly address the issue in her response.
Speaking later Thursday on France 2 television, Lagarde said people had made a “mountain” out of something that was “totally” rumour.
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“I am committed to my mission: price stability, defending the euro and keeping confidence in the currency, and I will do my job to its term,” she said. “After, we’ll see — I’ve got my grand kids, I’ve got roses, I’ve got a family, I’ll perhaps do something else, it’s possible.”
Lagarde has previously quit roles early before: She left her position as managing director of the International Monetary Fund in 2019 to take up her role in Frankfurt. Back then, she also publicly denied interest in the ECB job beforehand.
Although her name is floated almost every time a top job comes up in France, there wasn’t much reason to doubt until now that she’d serve out her term. That’s despite a lot of internal criticism of her leadership.
In April, a survey by labour union IPSO revealed that a majority of respondents has little or no trust in the ECB’s Executive Board, especially the president, when it comes to staff matters. That indicated scant progress has been made since a similar poll conducted midway through Lagarde’s term in late 2023.
