Željko Rohatinski (3 August 1951 – 12 December 2019) was a Croatian economist who served as Governor of the

Croatian National Bank The Croatian National Bank ( hr, Hrvatska narodna banka or HNB; ) is the central bank of the Republic of Croatia. HNB was established by the Constitution of Croatia which was passed by the Parliament of Croatia on 21 December 1990. Its main res ...

from 2000 to 2012.

Early life

Rohatinski graduated from the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb ( hr, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, ; la, Universitas Studiorum Zagrabiensis) is the largest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of ...

Faculty of

Economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

in 1974, where he also received his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

in 1988 with a thesis titled ''Vremenska dimenzija ekonomske aktivnosti društva'' ( en, The Dimension of Time in Society's Economic Activities).

Career

He started his professional career in 1974 as an intern at Croatia's Republic Bureau of Planning, and was appointed general manager of the Bureau in 1989. In 1990 he was appointed Head of the Macroeconomic Analysis and Policy Division at the Zagreb Institute of Economics, which he managed until 1998, when he became

Chief Economist Chief economist is a single-position job class having primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and production of economic and financial analysis. It is distinguished from the other economist positions by the broader scope of respons ...

Privredna banka Zagreb Privredna banka Zagreb or PBZ is the second largest bank in Croatia (after Zagrebačka banka), owned by Intesa Sanpaolo group of Italy. It is listed on the Zagreb Stock Exchange and is one of 24 companies included in the CROBEX share index. PBZ ...

, where he worked until April 2000, when he took up the post of Director for Macroeconomic Analyses at

Agrokor Agrokor () was a conglomerate, largely centered in agribusiness, with headquarters in Zagreb, Croatia. Founded in 1976 as a flower grower, it became a joint stock company in 1989, with 100 percent ownership held by founder Ivica Todorić. It grea ...

. He left that post in July 2000 upon being appointed Governor of the Croatian National Bank by decree of the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sab ...

on 12 July to serve a six-year term. On 7 July 2006, he was reappointed for his second six-year term at the post. Rohatinski was a

Fulbright Program The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people o ...

fellow, and he authored a number of research papers, a book edition of his thesis titled ''Vremenska dimenzija ekonomske aktivnosti društva'', and he also co-authored the book ''A Road to Low Inflation'' (published in English by the

Croatian Government The Government of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Hrvatske), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Republike Hrvatske), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government ( hr, hrvatska Vlada), is the main executive branch of government ...

in 1995, ). In December 2008, '' Jutarnji list'', a national Croatian daily newspaper, selected Rohatinski as Person of the Year, crediting him with the stability of Croatia's financial system amid the

global financial crisis Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

. In January 2009, ''

The Banker ''The Banker'' is an English-language monthly international financial affairs publication owned by ''The Financial Times'' Ltd. and edited in London, United Kingdom. The magazine was first published in January 1926 through founding Editor, Bren ...

'', an international financial monthly published by the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Ni ...

'', bestowed two awards on Rohatinski in their annual banking awards. Rohatinski won the Award for Best Central Bank Governor of Europe and the Best Central Bank Governor of the World in 2008.

Personal life

Rohatinski was married and had two adult children. In his spare time he liked to play chess and tennis. He was a fan of Alan Ford comics and the Rolling Stones, and his favorite movie was Deer Hunter. Željko Rohatinski died suddenly on December 12, 2019 at the age of 68.

References

External links

Biography
at the

website
Željko Rohatinski - Vuk samotnjak s Trga burze
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rohatinski, Zeljko 1951 births 2019 deaths Croatian economists Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb alumni Governors of the Croatian National Bank Monetary economists Scientists from Zagreb