Croatia's Vujcic nominated as ECB's next vice president

Boris Vujcic's Nomination and Role

By Jan Strupczewski and Balazs Koranyi

Background and Experience

BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Croatia's Boris Vujcic was formally nominated on Monday as the European Central Bank's next vice president, putting him on track to become the first person from the former communist east to win a seat on the board of the bloc's most important financial institution.

Confirmation Process

Having secured the support of the euro zone's 21 finance ministers, Vujcic is now expected to take over from Spain's Luis de Guindos on June 1, becoming the ECB's number two behind Christine Lagarde at a relatively tranquil moment, with inflation at target and interest rate changes not even on the agenda.

Future ECB Leadership Positions

The decision also gives one of Europe's smallest economies the chance to take on a top ECB job, a relative rarity for an institution that has been dominated by the bloc's four biggest nations since its inception more than a quarter of a century ago.

COVETED JOBS COMING IN 2027

But ECB watchers say the vice presidency is not among the most coveted jobs and Europe's biggest nations did not even enter the contest as they focus their attention on the bigger roles coming up next year.

The jobs of the president, the chief economist and the head of market operations all become vacant next year, and Germany, Spain and France are all expected to be in the race, continuing their dominance of the ECB. 

THIRD-TERM GOVERNOR

Now serving his third term as Croatia's central bank chief, Vujcic, 61, is a trained monetary economist who oversaw his own country's accession to the euro zone as its 20th nation in 2023, making it the second-newest member after Bulgaria.

A former university professor, Vujcic is considered a moderate hawk who has consistently warned against lingering inflation risks and argued for only gradual policy easing to make sure price pressures are fully extinguished.

A governor or deputy governor for more than 25 years now, he was also instrumental in negotiating Croatia's accession into the European Union in 2013.  

While the nomination is still subject to a confirmation process, that is largely a formality as the heads of governments make the final call and normally confirm their finance ministers' pick. 

The European Parliament is likely to raise objections, particularly about gender, since men make up 25 of the ECB's 27-member Governing Council. But its lawmakers cannot actually stop the selection process. 

The vice president is responsible for financial stability analysis and fills in for the president whenever necessary.

Other candidates for the job included Latvia's Martins Kazaks, Finland's Olli Rehn Portugal's Mario Centeno, Estonia's Madis Muller and Lithuania's Rimantas Sadzius.

(Editing by Hugh Lawson)