US President Joe Biden nominates Indian-American Ajay Banga to head World Bank

The Biden administration on Thursday (February 23) nominated former Mastercard chief executive Ajay Banga to lead the World Bank. The announcement comes amid the ongoing push for development lenders to revamp and address global problems more effectively.

Banga's nominationafter World Bank's chief David Malpass announced plans to step down early, is the first step of the long confirmation process before the Bank's board takes the final decision. The process is set to run until March 29.

If his name gets the nod from the World Bank Board of Directors, Banga would be the first-ever Indian-American and Sikh-American to head either of the two top international financial institutions: the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

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World Bank previously said that it has started accepting candidate nominations and it would "strongly" encourage women candidates.

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The World Bank president is traditionally an American citizen chosen by the US. Also, it is not clear so far if any other countries besides America will nominate a candidate.

US President Joe Biden said in a statement that Ajay Banga is "uniquely equipped to lead the World Bank at this critical moment in history" and also added that Banga has a "critical experience mobilizing public-private resources to tackle the most urgent challenges of our time, including climate change".

"He has spent more than three decades building and managing successful, global companies that create jobs and bring investment to developing economies, and guiding organisations through periods of fundamental change," Biden said.

Who is Ajay Banga?

The 63-year-old Banga is the current Vice Chairman at General Atlantic. Previously, he was President and CEO of Mastercard, leading the company through a strategic, technological and cultural transformation. He was conferred with India's fourth-highest civilian award, Padma Shri, in 2016.

Banga was raised in India and attended schools across the nation in cities like Secunderabad, Jalandhar, Delhi, and Ahmedabad. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in Economics from St Stephen's College, Delhi University. He then pursued PGP in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

Banga started his business career with Nestlé in 1981. He then spent the next 13 years working in jobs spanning sales, marketing, and general management.

The White House states that over the course of his career, Banga has become a global leader in technology, data, financial services and innovating for inclusion.

He is the honorary chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce, serving as chairman from 2020-2022. He is also chairman of Exor and independent director at Temasek. He became an adviser to General Atlantic's climate-focused fund, BeyondNetZero, at its inception in 2021.

(With inputs from agencies)

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