(Finance) – The president of the Swiss National Bank, Thomas Jordanhas decided to resign at the end of September 2024, after 12 years in the role and three years before the end of the current mandate. We read this in a note, where the Bank Council and the General Management say they take note “with great regret of this decision”.
Jordan, born in 1963, is entered the service of the National Bank in 1997. Initially, as head of the Research organizational unit, he played a decisive role in the development of the new monetary policy strategy introduced at the end of 1999. In 2004 he moved to the 3rd department as an alternate member of the General Directorate, and then became a member of the same in May 2007. The period in which he was head of the 3rd department was characterized by the serious financial crisis, during which he dealt, among other things, with the StabFund stabilization fund, established for the acquisition of UBS’s illiquid assets. At the beginning of 2010, as vice president of the General Management, he took over the management of the 2nd department. In addition to overseeing the introduction of a macroprudential model with the countercyclical capital buffer, he closely followed the development of the 9th series of banknotes.
In January 2012, Jordan took over the leadership of the National Bank, initially on a temporary basis and then, from April of the same year, as President of the Governing Board and Head of the 1st Department. The years spent at the top of the National Bank were marked by a unusually large number of challengeswhich required far-reaching monetary policy measures to ensure price stability and protect financial stability in various economic situations.
With the abolition of the minimum exchange rate between the Swiss franc and the euro at the beginning of 2015, the National Bank was able to maintain control over its monetary policy and ensure its effectiveness. During the heavy collapse of the world economy caused by pandemic in 2020, managed to preserve price stability by resorting to extensive measures such as the SNB-COVID-19 refinancing scheme. The National Bank responded decisively to the global increase in inflation following the pandemic and the outbreak of war in Ukraine, allowing a rapid restoration of price stability. In Switzerland, the inflationary phase was much shorter and less pronounced than abroad.
In the spring of 2023, when the Credit Suisse crisis risked seriously endangering Switzerland’s financial stability, the National Bank provided liquidity support of historic proportions which ultimately enabled the acquisition of Credit Suisse by UBS, thus making a decisive contribution to preventing a financial crisis with important economic consequences.
“Having overcome the various challenges of recent years, the time has now come to step down – commented Jordan – It was an immense privilege to be able to serve the National Bank and the general interest of the country. I would like to thank the Bank Council, the Executive Board and the staff for their excellent cooperation and spirit of collegiality. I extend heartfelt thanks to the Federal Council, Parliament and the population for the great trust placed in the National Bank and for preserving its mandate and independence.”
(Photo: Marco Pregnolato on Unsplash)