by John Revill and Dave Graham
ZURICH (Reuters) – The president of the Swiss National Bank (SNB), Thomas Jordan, at the head of the institution for more than 12 years, will step down at the end of September, the Swiss central bank announced on Friday.
On the foreign exchange market, the Swiss franc fell 0.25% to 0.958 against the euro, to a 13-week low.
Aged 61, Thomas Jordan has led the Swiss central bank since January 2012 and his mandate has been marked by a series of crises and an almost constant fight against the appreciation of the Swiss franc.
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“After meeting the various challenges of recent years, the time has come for me to step down,” he said, quoted in a press release.
Thomas Jordan joined the SNB in 1997 and in May 2007 became a member of the board of governors, responsible for setting key rates.
He took over as president of the institution after his predecessor, Philipp Hildebrand, was forced to resign following a scandal involving his wife in a file on transactions in euros and dollars.
“He has done an excellent job and will be very difficult to replace,” said Karsten Junius, an economist at J.Safra Sarasin. “But the end of his era is perhaps also a chance to expand the decision-making process at the SNB,” he added.
Thomas Jordan was criticized for reacting late to the crisis at Credit Suisse, bought by UBS, and for having had too much influence on the decisions of the SNB.
In a press release, the BNS said it regretted Thomas Jordan’s surprise decision.
“The bank board and the general management deeply regret the decision of Thomas Jordan and sincerely thank him for his exceptional commitment over many years,” writes the BNS.
(Reporting Dave Graham and John Revill; French version Claude Chendjou, editing by Kate Entringer)
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