New Deputy Riksbank Governors - Lars E.O. Svensson and Barbro Wickman-Parak

Date 25/04/2007

The General Council of the Riksbank decided today at an extraordinary meeting to appoint Lars E.O. Svensson and Barbro Wickman-Parak new members of the Executive Board of the Riksbank. They succeed Kristina Persson, whose period in office expires on 30 April and Eva Srejber, who resigned her position on 29 March. The General Council also decided to appoint Irma Rosenberg First Deputy Governor of the Riksbank.

"We are very pleased to be able to present two such highly qualified persons as new members of the Executive Board. The General Council is unanimous in these two appointments," said Chairman of the General Council Johan Gernandt and Vice Chairman Leif Pagrotsky in a joint comment.

"Lars E.O. Svensson is currently professor at Princeton University and one of the world’s leading authorities and researchers in the monetary policy field. He has previously assessed monetary policy in New Zealand and Norway and is a member of the Monetary Policy Advisory Board for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Mr Svensson has previously been professor at the Institute for International Economic Studies, Stockholm University, for many years. He has a long list of academic qualifications. As of 1990, he has also been one of the Riksbank’s scholarly advisers and has thereby followed the Riksbank’s work very closely for many years," said Johan Gernandt and Leif Pagrotsky.

"Barbro Wickman-Parak has been chief economist at SBAB since 2003 and has long experience as an economist, both from the National Institute of Economic Research, where she worked for four years with economic assessments and later at Sweden Post’s economic secretariat. She has monitored monetary policy and followed the Riksbank’s work for many years as an economist at both Sweden Post and SBAB. During 15 years, from 1970 to 1985, Ms Wickman-Parak worked at the Riksbank on credit market issues and also as director of communications.  Her broad background in the socio-economic field makes her excellently suited to the job as deputy governor of the Riksbank," said Johan Gernandt and Leif Pagrotsky.

The two new members will take up their positions on 21 May. This means that they will be unable to take part in the monetary policy meeting on 3 May.

The Executive Board of the Riksbank consists of six members, who are appointed for a period of office of six years. The other members are Governor Stefan Ingves, First Deputy Governor Irma Rosenberg and Deputy Governors Lars Nyberg and Svante Öberg.

A press conference with the Chairman of the General Council Johan Gernandt, the Vice Chairman Leif Pagrotsky, Lars E.O. Svensson and Barbro Wickman-Parak will be held today at 11 a.m. at the Riksbank, Brunkebergstorg 11. Press cards must be shown.

The press conference will be broadcast live on the Riksbank's website.

Below are links to Lars E.O. Svensson’s and Barbro Wickman-Parak’s CVs.