The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) announced that Cecilia Skingsley, the head of the BIS Innovation Hub and former Deputy Governor of the Swedish Central Bank, will be leaving the Swiss-based institution two years ahead of schedule to take on a government position in Sweden.
Skingsley took on the role as head of the BIS Innovation Hub in September 2022 for a five-year term. However, she will be stepping down next month to become the County Governor of the County Administrative Board of Stockholm.
Established in 2019, the BIS Innovation Hub aims to identify and develop new technologies. Since its inception, the department has rapidly expanded its operations to seven financial centers from London to Hong Kong.
Earlier this year, reports indicated that the newly appointed BIS General Manager, Pablo Hernandez de Cos, who is set to take office in July, will streamline the operations of the Innovation Hub.
Central bank digital currencies have become a hot topic in geopolitics. Last year, BIS abruptly pulled out of a flagship project collaborating with the People’s Bank of China and several other Asian central banks.
Agustín Carstens, the current BIS General Manager, stated that under Skingsley’s leadership, the Innovation Hub made “significant progress” in achieving its strategic goal of assisting central banks across the world in facing future challenges.
Referred to as the “central bank of central banks,” the institution announced that the position will be temporarily filled by former Swiss National Bank Chief Andrea Maechler, who will oversee the recruitment process for Skingsley’s successor in due course.
(Adapted from reports by Reuters)