Former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Urjit Patel has been appointed as one of the 24 executive directors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved Patel’s appointment for a three-year term.
Patel served as the 24th RBI governor from September 2016, succeeding Raghuram Rajan. He resigned in December 2018, citing personal reasons, becoming the first RBI chief since 1990 to step down before completing his term.
The IMF’s executive board comprises 24 executive directors elected by member countries or groups. It is headed by the managing director. The board reviews economic policies at national, regional, and global levels, approves IMF financing to assist members facing balance of payments issues, and oversees capacity development initiatives.
A Kenyan-born Indian economist, Patel currently serves as chairman of National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, additional director of Britannia Industries and independent director of John Cockerill India.
Patel was born in Nairobi in 1963. His grandfather had migrated from Gujarat to Kenya early in the 20th century. He studied in Nairobi and later at London School of Economics. He obtained an M.Phil. degree from University of Oxford and was conferred a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University in 1990. He was at IMF India Desk during the 1991–94 transition period.
He later served as a consultant in the Ministry of Finance’s Department of Economic Affairs from 1998 to 2001 and has held several roles across the public and private sectors.
