ZURICH (Reuters) -The Swiss National Bank's next chairman will be Martin Schlegel, the government said on Wednesday, replacing long-serving boss Thomas Jordan when he steps down at the end of September.
Schlegel, who is currently SNB vice-chairman, will take up the role for the remainder of Jordan's term, which runs until 2027.
The 47-year-old had been widely seen as the most likely candidate both inside and outside the central bank, where he started his career in 2004 and was promoted to vice chairman in August 2022.
He replaces Jordan, who said in March he would depart after 12 years leading the SNB through a series of crises, including a sharp appreciation of the Swiss franc, the scrapping of its currency peg to the euro and the crash of Credit Suisse.
Schlegel was proposed by the SNB's supervisory bank council and his promotion was approved by the Swiss cabinet on Wednesday.
"This is the classic, safe choice by the SNB, and what was broadly expected," said Nikolay Markov, an economist at Swiss private bank Pictet.
"Schlegel has spent his entire career at the SNB and was clearly favoured by Thomas Jordan as his successor," Markov said. "It means it will be the same governance as before, with no major changes to monetary policy design or communication."
(Reporting by John Revill; Editing by Catherine Evans)
By John Revill
