Ajay Banga

India-born Banga has close ties to emerging markets, useful to the Bank which wants to help them on pressing problems.

For a job of this stature, we need more than a tap on the shoulder from President Biden.” Banga, born into a Sikh family in India, is vice chairman of General Atlantic, a US private equity firm that administration officials said has invested more than $800m in electric car charging solutions, solar power and sustainable farming. “Ajay is uniquely equipped to lead the World Bank at this critical moment in history,” Biden said in a statement. “They all do vastly more to exacerbate inequality than to fight it.” Banga’s nomination is the first to be made public, but the bank will accept nominations from other member countries through March 29. Asked about Washington’s decision not to nominate a woman, the official said Banga had “a personal conviction and excellent track record promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in the work that he does” and would bring that view to the bank.

US president puts forward choice to oversee new focus on climate crisis after resignation of Trump appointee David Malpass.

“Ajay is uniquely equipped to lead the World Bank at this critical moment in history. Anti-poverty groups are expected to question Banga’s commitment to fighting the climate crisis using private sector funds. He is known to have lost the confidence of Biden’s head of the US Treasury, Janet Yellen, who with other shareholders wanted to expand the bank’s development remit to include the climate crisis and other global challenges. He said it would allow the World Bank to “mobilise capital to power the green transition”. John Kerry, Biden’s climate envoy, said Banga was “the right choice to take on the responsibilities of the World Bank at this critical moment”. The World Bank said the first criterion for a future president was “a proven track record of leadership and accomplishment, particularly in development”.