The Ministry of Finance has appointed a selection committee to choose a new Bank of Thailand governor to succeed Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput, whose five year term will end on Sept 30.
Sathit Limpongpan, a former finance permanent secretary who chairs the committee, will soon call a meeting to prepare the requirements for candidates and the application timeline, ministry spokesperson Pornchai Thiraveja said on Thursday.
Thai law requires the committee to pick two candidates for the finance minister to choose from at least 90 days before the end of the incumbent governor’s term.
Some of the names making the rounds in local media as potential candidates include Roong Mallikamas, a BoT deputy governor; Sutapa Amornvivat, a former IMF economist and currently CEO of the SCB X fintech affiliate Abacus Digital; Santitarn Sathirathai, an independent member of the Monetary Policy Committee and future economy adviser with the Thailand Development Research Institute; and Ekniti Nitithanprapas, head of the finance ministry’s treasury department.
Mr Sethaput, a former World Bank economist, has held the governor’s position since 2020 but he cannot seek a second term as he reached the retirement age of 60 this year.
For the past 18 months, the central bank governor has found himself fending off calls from the Pheu Thai-led government for more interest-rate cuts to spur Thailand’s sputtering economy.
Mr Sethaput in turn has been a critic of Pheu Thai’s signature “digital wallet” policy, a series of cash handouts, none of them truly digital so far, that could eventually cost taxpayers 450 billion baht.
He has said that the Thai economy needs fundamental reforms rather than quick fixes if the country is to remain competitive. As well, he has spoken out about the need for central banks to remain independent.
The government last year attempted to manoeuvre former Pheu Thai cabinet minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong into the chairmanship of the Bank of Thailand board. Economists and former central bank governors condemned what they saw as political interference.
In the end, a court ruled Mr Kittiratt ineligible as he had recently held a political position as an adviser to former premier Srettha Thavisin.
The selection process for the chairmanship was restarted, with economist Somchai Sujjapongse, a former finance ministry permanent secretary, reportedly proposed for the post. The cabinet is expected to make a final decision later this month.