US President Joe Biden’s nominee and Indian-origin Ajay Banga has been elected as the 14th President of the World Bank. The bank’s 25-member executive board elected him as the new president on Wednesday.
Ajay Banga’s five-year term at the World Bank will begin on June 2nd, according to the organization. He will succeed David Malpass.
In February, Joe Biden appointed Ajay Banga as the President of the World Bank. At the time, his appointment as President was only a matter of time.
Ajay Banga was born in 1959 into a Sikh family in Pune, Maharashtra, India. He completed his undergraduate studies in economics at St. Stephen’s College in Delhi. He then obtained an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad. He began his career in India.
In 1996, Ajay Banga moved to the United States from India. In 2007, he became a US citizen. Currently, he is working as Vice-Chairman of Mastercard. He is also the Deputy Chairman of the Partnership for Central America.
Before joining Mastercard, Banga held the top position at Mastercard for more than a decade. In 2009, he took over as President and Chief Operating Officer (CEO) of Mastercard. He stepped down from Mastercard in December 2021.
Prior to joining Mastercard, for more than a decade, Banga worked in Citi Group and Nestle in India. In addition, he was awarded the Padma Shri in 2016.
