Pakistan: Analysts alarmed as central bank chief resigns
Euromoney, is part of the Delinian Group, Delinian Limited, 4 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX, Registered in England & Wales, Company number 00954730
Copyright © Delinian Limited and its affiliated companies 2024
Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement
BANKING

Pakistan: Analysts alarmed as central bank chief resigns

Under pressure on interest rate policy; A critic of growing government debt

 

Shahid Hafiz Kardar was governor of the State Bank of Pakistan for just 283 days before he quit on July 18

Shahid Hafiz Kardar was governor of the State Bank of Pakistan for just 283 days before he quit on July 18

Yaseen Anwar has been appointed acting governor of the State Bank of Pakistan after the country lost its second central bank chief in just 15 months.

Anwar, once a senior private banker at ­defunct Washington-based Riggs Bank, is widely seen as a makeshift appointment while Islamabad casts around for a serious, long-term appointee.

Shahid Hafiz Kardar, a respected chartered accountant with a masters degree in economics from the University of Oxford, was governor for just 283 days before he quit on July 18. Yet he was a relatively long-term incumbent compared with his fleetingly employed predecessor, Syed Salim Raza, who lasted just 153 days before jumping ship.

Kardar’s abrupt departure is a minor mystery. He appeared to blame the government and a worsening economic climate for his exit. In June his chief of staff, Hamza Ali Malik, warned that rising inflation and soaring debt coupled with slowing growth was a "nightmare" combination.

Kardar was keen to maintain the benchmark discount rate at 14% to tackle inflation, which has been hovering between 13% and 15% all year.

Gift this article