With the departure of Christine Lagarde from the ECB, France's influence is declining in major international institutions

On February 7, 2027, Christine Lagarde will leave the presidency of the European Central Bank (ECB), the bank which manages the currency of the 21 member states of the European Union which have opted for the euro. With no French person expected to succeed him, Paris is preparing to lose a particularly visible incarnation of its influence in European and global economic governance.

The contrast with the prosperous years is striking. In 2007, Jean-Claude Trichet chaired the ECB, Pascal Lamy headed the World Trade Organization and Dominique Strauss-Kahn took charge of the International Monetary Fund. Three cardinal institutions, three French. Christine Lagarde then extended this presence at the summit, at the IMF from 2011 to 2019, then in Frankfurt.

Odile Renaud-Basso, at the head of the EBRD

The former French concentration in key economic positions has dispersed. Should this be seen as a downgrade? The ECB has already had two French presidents, Trichet and Lagarde, out of the four who have succeeded one another since its creation...