core sector communique

Statement by IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde on the Death of Sir Andrew Crockett

September 4, 2012

Ms. Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), issued the following statement today after news of the death of Sir Andrew Crockett, former IMF Deputy Director of Research, General Manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), Chairman of the Per Jacobsson Foundation, and Executive Director of the Bank of England:

“It is with great sadness that we have learned of the passing of Andrew Crockett. He served the IMF, the BIS and the international economic community more broadly with great distinction. On behalf of the IMF, I wish to offer our deepest condolences. Andrew Crockett was a widely admired international public servant, who touched many in his life. The IMF has benefitted greatly from his insights and ability to achieve meaningful results.”

In 1972, Sir Andrew was seconded from the Bank of England to the IMF to become Personal Assistant to the Managing Director. He subsequently resigned from the Bank to join the Fund's Research Department. He was Chief of the Special Studies Division from 1974-77, working on the reform of the International Monetary System, before moving to the Middle Eastern department. In 1982, he was appointed Deputy Director of the IMF Research Department. He rejoined the Bank in 1989 as an Executive Director with responsibility for International Affairs and Financial Statistics. He became the General Manager of BIS, a post he held until 2003. Between 1999 and 2003 he served as Chairman of the Financial Stability Forum, predecessor to theFinancial Stability Board. After retiring from the BIS, he joined JPMorgan Chase & Co. as Special Advisor to the Chairman. In 2007, Sir Andrew chaired a Committee of Eminent Persons that set out a long-term revenue plan to finance the IMF. In 2008, the IMF's Board of Governors endorsed a new package of measures to end the IMF's over-reliance on lending income. The package included most of the measures that had been proposed by the Crockett Committee. He served as Chairman of the Per Jacobsson Foundation, which sponsors lectures and panel discussions by eminent persons from the world of finance, economic policy, and international monetary cooperation, from 2004-2010.