European Union Finance Ministers on Friday agreed today to endorse Nadia Calviño as President of the European Investment Bank (EIB)
The decision was reached following consultations among the Bank’s shareholders, led by Belgium’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Vincent Van Peteghem, who currently chairs the EIB’s Board of Governors.
Her appointment, effective from January 1, comes after receiving unanimous support from EU finance ministers. Calviño, a multilingual leader with a strong background in Spanish politics and the European Commission, was chosen over her competitor Margrethe Vestager.
“The EIB is a key instrument for delivering EU policy goals, both within our Union and beyond our shores,” said Van Peteghem. “We are convinced that Nadia Calviño has all the qualities needed to manage the world’s biggest multilateral bank, channeling much-needed financing to businesses, and supporting investment to boost Europe’s competitiveness and sustainable growth.”
Calviño, the First Vice-President of Spain’s Government and economy minister, succeeds Werner Hoyer, whose second mandate at the helm of the EU bank ends on 31 December 2023.
An economist by training, Calviño previously served between 2014 and 2018 as Director-General for Budget at the European Commission.
As Spain’s Economy Minister, Calviño successfully steered the country through economic challenges brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine conflict. Under her guidance, Spain achieved significant growth while keeping inflation rates low.
Calviño is also recognized for her dedication to gender equality. She made headlines for boycotting a Madrid employers’ federation photo opportunity due to its lack of female representation, underscoring her commitment to challenging gender disparities within power circles.
“The EIB, the EU’s financial arm, is a key institution for the European economy. It will have an even more important role going forward to fund the green transition, to provide financial support to the rebuilding of Ukraine, and also support the role of Europe in the world” said Calviño.
Under Dr. Hoyer’s leadership since 2012, the EIB became the first multilateral bank to end support for unabated fossil fuels and raised its lending volumes for clean energy and security investments in Europe to unprecedented levels, earning the title of EU climate bank.
Dr. Hoyer spearheaded initiatives ranging from the financing of vaccines against Covid and polio, to helping European businesses weather the fallout from the 2008 financial and social crisis, the COVID pandemic, and Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“Having someone with Nadia Calviño’s breadth of experience in politics and finance in charge of our operations highlights the commitment of our shareholders – the EU Member States – to expand our footprint and ensure that at a time when Europe faces such profound challenges, the EU bank will have the leadership it needs as financing arm of the EU,” Hoyer said.
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