Bank of Mexico Gov. Agustín Carstens resigning to lead BIS

MEXICO CITY, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- The Bank of Mexico on Thursday announced its governor, Agustín Carstens, will step down in July to become the next general manager of the Bank for International Settlements.

Carstens will serve as general manager for a five-year term. BIS was established in 1930, making it the oldest international financial institution in the world.

"Today, Dr. Agustín Carstens presented to [President] Enrique Peña Nieto his resignation from the position of governor of the Bank of Mexico, effective from the first day of July 2017 ... in order to be able to accept the designation as general manager of the Bank for International Settlements," the Bank of Mexico said in a statement. "It will be the first time a central banker from an emerging economy, such as Mexico, will occupy that high position."

Sixty central banks -- making up about 95 percent of the global gross domestic product -- are BIS members.

Carstens, who began is career at the Bank of Mexico in 1980, received a PhD in economics from the University of Chicago. He previously served as Mexico's Minister of Finance from 2006 until 2009. In 2015, Carstens chaired the International Monetary Fund's International Monetary and Financial Committee.

"The Board of Directors is delighted to have secured a person of Mr. Carstens's remarkable calibre and international experience to be the next BIS general manager," Jens Weidmann, chair of the BIS Board of Directors, said in a statement. "He is held in high regard in the central banking and international financial communities and already has a strong relationship with the BIS. The Board looks forward very much to working closely with Mr. Carstens in his new role."

Carstens will begin leading the international financial institution in October.