France backs Klaas Knot for ECB president, seeks chief economist role in return

The European Central Bank is about to get a new face at the top, and the backroom dealing has already started. France has signaled it will support Dutch candidate Klaas Knot for ECB president, but with a very specific price tag: Paris wants the chief economist seat for one of its own. The vacancies piling up Christine Lagarde’s presidency is technically up for renewal in October 2027, but there’s growing expectation she may step down early, accelerating the timeline. Philip Lane’s tenure as chief economist wraps up in May 2027. And Isabel Schnabel’s executive board seat opens at the end of 2027. Three top jobs, all available within roughly the same 12-month stretch. European capitals are trying to bundle everything into what diplomats are calling a “grand package” deal, potentially sealed by the end of 2026. France appears to have made that calculus early. Rather than push its own candidate for the presidency, Paris is throwing its weight behind Knot in exchange for influence over who shapes the ECB’s economic forecasts, interest rate models, and policy recommendations as chief economist. Why Knot is the frontrunner Klaas Knot led De Nederlandsche Bank, the Dutch central bank, from...