Spain, Netherlands nominate candidates to succeed Lagarde as ECB chief

Spain and the Netherlands nominated candidates on Friday to succeed European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, following her decision to step down early next year.

The Eurogroup announced that two official candidacies were submitted by member states ahead of the deadline to replace the outgoing central bank chief.

The two nominees in the race are former Bank of Spain Governor Pablo Hernandez de Cos and Dutch central bank chief Klaas Knot.

Lagarde formally informed the European Council on Oct. 29 that she would resign from her position at the helm of the ECB by Feb. 7, 2027.

Finance ministers from the euro area are scheduled to take stock of the two candidacies at their upcoming Eurogroup meeting on Nov. 9.

The next ECB president will be appointed by the European Council on a recommendation from the Council of the European Union through a reinforced qualified majority.

The voting threshold requires the support of at least 72% of euro area member states representing at least 65% of the eurozone's population.

Both the European Central Bank and the European Parliament will be formally consulted before EU leaders finalize the appointment, according to the Eurogroup.