Christine Lagarde to leave the ECB on 7 February 2027

Christine Lagarde has informed European Council President António Costa of her intention to step down as President of the European Central Bank on 7 February 2027. This was confirmed in an official statement published on 29 October 2026.

Costa said the procedure for appointing a successor will begin today. The aim is to reach a decision in good time and ensure an orderly transition in the institution's leadership.

The appointment is made by the European Council in its euro-area composition under the procedure set out in Article 283(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. No successor had been selected at the time of the announcement.

Lagarde has led the ECB since November 2019. Her tenure has encompassed the COVID-19 pandemic, energy crises and high inflation in Europe — events that placed euro-area monetary policy at the centre of economic decision-making.

The leadership change also matters for Bulgaria as part of the European economic system: ECB decisions affect financial markets, borrowing costs and inflation expectations. Today's statement is not an interest-rate decision.

Photo: Markus Spiske / Unsplash — archival photograph of the ECB headquarters in Frankfurt, not from the statement issued on 29 October.

Sources: European Council, statement by António Costa, 29 October 2026; ECB, press release, 29 October 2026.