Croatia’s Vujčić Takes Over as ECB Vice-President
Croatia's Boris Vujčić became the ECB's first vice-president from a post-2004 EU member state on June 1, 2026, succeeding Spain's Luis de Guindos after an eight-year term.
According to Brussels Signal, Vujčić officially took office on June 1, 2026, succeeding Spain’s Luis de Guindos, whose eight-year term at the ECB concluded. The Croatian economist will serve as deputy to ECB President Christine Lagarde on the bank’s six-member Executive Board.
The European Council formally appointed Vujčić on March 19 to a non-renewable eight-year term. The appointment followed approval by the European Parliament and came after the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers nominated him in January.
Vujčić has served as governor of the Croatian National Bank since 2012. Under his leadership, Croatia joined the euro in 2023, becoming the currency’s 20th member state. A trained economist and former university professor, Vujčić is widely regarded as a moderate hawk who has consistently cautioned against persistent inflation.
His selection over rivals including the central bank governors of Finland, Estonia and Latvia, as well as a former Bank of Portugal chief, represents a significant milestone for newer EU member states in accessing top European financial positions.
De Guindos reflects on tenure, urges banking union completion
De Guindos, who joined the ECB in June 2018, used a May 27 press conference to review his time in office. He expressed pride that the euro area experienced no major financial stability incident during his term, despite facing multiple crises.
The outgoing vice-president noted that eurozone banks demonstrated resilience through the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Donald Trump’s return to the United States presidency, and the collapse of Credit Suisse. During his tenure, de Guindos held responsibility for macroprudential policy, financial stability and risk management.
Call for deposit insurance scheme
Looking to the future, de Guindos emphasized the urgent need to complete banking union. While acknowledging that bank supervision had functioned effectively overall, he stated that the euro area’s monetary union remains incomplete.
The Spanish official pointed out that although the bloc has achieved single supervision and single resolution, it still lacks a common deposit guarantee. He identified the European Deposit Insurance Scheme, known as EDIS, as critical to future stability.
De Guindos acknowledged that doubts about such a fund were understandable a decade or more ago, but insisted the situation has changed fundamentally. He called on legislators, governments, the European Commission and the European Council to leverage the current strength of banks to complete banking union through EDIS, which he described as the project’s third pillar.
With information from Brussels Signal
