Klaus P. Regling (born 3 October 1950 in
Lübeck
Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the stat ...
,
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
) is a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
economist and the former Chief Executive Officer of the
European Financial Stability Facility
The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) is a special purpose vehicle financed by members of the eurozone to address the European sovereign-debt crisis. It was agreed by the Council of the European Union on 9 May 2010, with the object ...
(EFSF) and Managing Director of the
European Stability Mechanism
The European Stability Mechanism (ESM) is an intergovernmental organization located in Luxembourg City, which operates under public international law for all eurozone member states having ratified a special ESM intergovernmental treaty. It was ...
.
Regling was reportedly considered as a possible head of the
European Central Bank
The European Central Bank (ECB) is the prime component of the monetary Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) as well as one of seven institutions of the European Union. It is one of the world's most important centra ...
to succeed
Jean Claude Trichet
Jean-Claude Trichet (; born 20 December 1942) is a French economist who served as President of the European Central Bank from 2003 to 2011. Previous to his assumption of the presidency he served as Governor of the Bank of France from 1993 to 2003 ...
.
Early life and education
The son of a carpenter who sat in the German
Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the German Federalism, federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representat ...
for the
Social Democrats
Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote s ...
,
[Zeke Turner (August 21, 2015)]
Meet Mr. Stability
''Politico Europe
''Politico Europe'' (stylized as ''POLITICO Europe'') is the European edition of the German-owned news organization ''Politico'' reporting on political affairs of the European Union. Its headquarters are located in Brussels with additional offices ...
''. Regling studied economics at the
University of Hamburg
The University of Hamburg (german: link=no, Universität Hamburg, also referred to as UHH) is a public research university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by combining the previous General Lecture System ('' Allgemeines Vor ...
, and after receiving his bachelor's degree in 1971 went on to the
University of Regensburg
The University of Regensburg (german: link=no, Universität Regensburg) is a public research university located in the medieval city of Regensburg, Bavaria, a city that is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university was founded on ...
, where he earned a master's in the subject in 1975.
Career
In 1975 Regling began work at the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster gl ...
(IMF) in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
He spent his first two years as part of the IMF's Economist Program, specifically the Research and African Department, and the following three years as an economist in the Research Department.
In 1980 Regling left and spent a year in the Economics Department of the
Association of German Banks
The Association of German Banks (german: Bundesverband deutscher Banken) is the association of private banks in Germany and a key lobby group for Germany's financial sector. In the traditional 3-pillar system of the German banking industry, this r ...
(BdB) before being hired as an economist by the
German Ministry of Finance
The Federal Ministry of Finance (german: Bundesministerium der Finanzen), abbreviated BMF, is the cabinet-level finance ministry of Germany, with its seat at the Detlev-Rohwedder-Haus in Berlin and a secondary office in Bonn. The current Federa ...
, where he worked in the European Monetary Affairs Division until 1985. That year he returned to the IMF and worked both in Washington as well as in
Jakarta,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
. In 1991 Regling left the IMF once again and returned to the German Ministry of Finance, where he was named the Chief of the International Monetary Affairs Division. In 1993 he became the Deputy Director-General for International Monetary and Financial Relations and in 1995 the Director-General for European and International Financial Relations. In this capacity, he served as
Chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl (; 3 April 1930 – 16 June 2017) was a German politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and Leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) from 1973 to 1998. Kohl's 16-year tenure is the longes ...
’s representative to the IMF and the
Group of Seven
The Group of Seven (G7) is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States; additionally, the European Union (EU) is a "non-enumerated member". It is official ...
industrialised nations.
[Klaus Regling: Money meister](_blank)
''European Voice
''Politico Europe'' (stylized as ''POLITICO Europe'') is the European edition of the German-owned news organization ''Politico'' reporting on political affairs of the European Union. Its headquarters are located in Brussels with additional offices ...
'', May 30, 2001. While at the Ministry, he also held the roles of an alternate governor to the
Asian Development Bank
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established on 19 December 1966, which is headquartered in the Ortigas Center located in the city of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. The bank also maintains 31 field offi ...
and the
Inter-American Development Bank
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB or IADB) is an international financial institution headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States of America, and serving as the largest source of development financing for Latin America and the Cari ...
as well as on the supervisory board of
Hermes Credit Insurance.
He remained with the ministry until 1998.
In 1999, Regling entered the private sector as the Managing Director of the
Moore Capital Strategy Group in London,
[ where his colleagues included ]David Lipton
David Lipton (born November 9, 1953) is an American economist who served as the Acting Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund from July 2, 2019, following Christine Lagarde's nomination as President of the European Central Bank, unti ...
and Philipp Hildebrand
Philipp Michael Hildebrand (born 19 July 1963) is a Swiss banker who has been serving as a vice chairman of BlackRock since 2012.Jochelle Mendonca, Emma Thomasson and Sinead Cruise (June 13, 2012)Former Swiss central bank head to join BlackRock''R ...
. In addition to his role at Moore Capital, he served on the Financial Sector Review Group appointed by the Managing Director of the IMF, Horst Köhler
Horst Köhler (; born 22 February 1943) is a German politician who served as President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the CDU (of which he is a member) and the CSU, as well as the ...
, to provide the organization with an independent perspective on how it should organize its financial sector and capital markets work.
Regling was appointed Director-General of the European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
's Economic and Financial Affairs Directorate General in 2001 and remained in post till June 2008. From 2008 to March 2009 he was part of the Issing Commission, which was formed by Chancellor Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Op ...
to advise the government on financial regulatory reform. He also became chairman of the Brussels-based KR Economics consultancy. On July 1, 2010 he became head of the European Financial Stability Facility
The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) is a special purpose vehicle financed by members of the eurozone to address the European sovereign-debt crisis. It was agreed by the Council of the European Union on 9 May 2010, with the object ...
.
Other activities
* European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is an international financial institution founded in 1991. As a multilateral developmental investment bank, the EBRD uses investment as a tool to build market economies. Initially fo ...
(EBRD), Ex-Officio Alternate Member of the Board of Governors (2001-2008)
Criticism
For his role in the Greek government-debt crisis
Greece faced a sovereign debt crisis in the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2007–2008. Widely known in the country as The Crisis (Greek: Η Κρίση), it reached the populace as a series of sudden reforms and austerity measures that le ...
, Yanis Varoufakis
Ioannis "Yanis" Varoufakis ( el, Ιωάννης Γεωργίου "Γιάνης" Βαρουφάκης, Ioánnis Georgíou "Giánis" Varoufákis, ; born 24 March 1961) is a Greek economist and politician. A former academic, he served as the Gree ...
has publicly criticized Regling as a "failed broker", "clueless" and "illiterate".
References
External links
Interview
with the ''Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Regling, Klaus
1950 births
German economists
German officials of the United Nations
International Monetary Fund people
Living people
University of Hamburg alumni
University of Regensburg alumni