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U.K.'s Hammond Willing to Look Abroad for Carney's BOE Successor

U.K.'s Hammond Willing to Look Abroad for Carney's BOE Successor

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond has indicated a willingness to look abroad when he begins his search for a successor to Bank of England Governor Mark Carney.

U.K.'s Hammond Willing to Look Abroad for Carney's BOE Successor

Canadian-born Carney is due to step down at the end of June 2019 after becoming the first foreigner to run the U.K. central bank in its three centuries. Hammond declined to rule out hunting globally for a replacement as he attended the International Monetary Fund’s annual meetings in Washington.

“The formal process has not yet started but I, and many other people I am sure, may have cast their eye around various rooms to see if any likely looking candidates hove into view,” he told reporters.

Potential foreign candidates could include former Mexican central bank chief Agustin Carstens, who now runs the Bank for International Settlements, and Raghuram Rajan, the University of Chicago professor who previously led the Reserve Bank of India.

U.K.'s Hammond Willing to Look Abroad for Carney's BOE Successor

Bookmaker Betway last week stopped taking bets on who will be the next BOE chief after an influx of money on Andrew Bailey, currently head of the Financial Conduct Authority. Other U.K. names linked to the role include Ben Broadbent and Dave Ramsden, both deputy governors at the BOE, and Sharon White, chief executive of communications regulator Ofcom who previously worked at the U.K. Treasury.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jessica Shankleman in London at jshankleman@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Simon Kennedy at skennedy4@bloomberg.net, Fergal O'Brien, Malcolm Scott

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