The president or governor of the European Central Bank is the top leader of the Central Bank of the European Union (ECB), and chairs both its Executive Committee and the Council of Governors.

The President heads the Executive Committee, the Governing Council and the General Council of the ECB. It also represents the bank in external meetings, such as before the G-20. The president is elected by a majority in the European Council, de ​​facto by those Member States that have adopted the euro for a non-renewable eight-year term.[2] However, the first president, Duisenberg, did not serve his entire term.

Duisenberg

The French interpretation of the agreement on the appointment of the Dutchman Wim Duisenberg as the first president of the European Central Bank was that Duisenberg resigned halfway through the term, after four years, and was replaced by the Frenchman Jean-Claude Trichet.[3] Duisenberg always vigorously denied that said agreement was closed and declared in February 2002 that he would remain in office until his 68th birthday on July 9, 2003.

Despite this, Jean-Claude Trichet was in the judicial spotlight due to the Crédit Lyonnais case") and, in June 2002, he would not have been able to succeed Duisenberg. Even on July 9, 2003, his judicial situation was not clarified and he remained in office until November 1, 2003.

List of the presidents of the European Central Bank since its creation on June 1, 1998.

Vice President Christian Noyer was only appointed for a four-year term so that the end of his term would coincide with the planned end of Wim Duisenberg's presidential term. His successor was the Greek economist and governor of the Bank of Greece Lukás Papadimos, appointed for an eight-year term.

• - Portal:European Union. Content related to the European Union.

• - Governing Council of the European Central Bank.

• - Executive Committee of the European Central Bank.

• - Christine Lagarde, president of the ECB.

• - Luis de Guindos, vice president of the ECB.