Ana Botín , executive president of Santander , will become the most prominent lobbyist in world banking, being the first woman to assume the role of director of the IIF trade body, the institute reported on Thursday.
Botín, a member of the board of directors of the Institute of International Finance (IIF, for its acronym in English) since 2014, will succeed Axel Weber, a member of the board of directors of UBS, who concludes his term as president at the end of the year, said the financial body.
Botín’s mandate will begin in January 2023, coinciding with the institute’s 40th anniversary.
“There has never been a more important time for a vibrant and innovative financial services industry,” Botin said in an IIF statement.
Among many other challenges, the financial sector is trying to walk a fine line between promoting global financial stability, supporting economic growth and prudent risk management.
With the possibility of some countries in Europe entering a recession caused by rising energy prices, banks could also face higher provisions in the future due to the increase in insolvencies among the most affected companies.
The IIF has been one of the leading voices in the financial services industry and during Weber’s tenure launched a work stream on climate finance and sustainability and continued to work on emerging markets and sovereign debt.
During the European sovereign debt crisis, the IIF helped coordinate talks in 2011 between banks and the Greek government. Greek banks were the largest private holders of the country’s public debt.
