Latest news with #PeterKazimir
Bloomberg
10 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Slovak Leader Rules Out Support for Kazimir's Return as Governor
Prime Minister Robert Fico will not support the reappointment of Peter Kazimir as head of Slovakia's central bank, the Slovak leader said on Sunday. 'He is not suitable for us,' Fico told a press conference, adding that the junior coalition party Voice, which holds the right to nominate the candidate, must propose a different name.
Reuters
14 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Slovak central bank chief Kazimir should not get another term, prime minister says
June 1 (Reuters) - Slovak central bank governor and European Central Bank policymaker Peter Kazimir is not the right candidate to get another six-year term and the country's main ruling party will not back him, Prime Minister Robert Fico said. Kazimir was finance minister for Fico's SMER-SSD party in 2012-2019 but was close to Peter Pellegrini, who led a group that split away to form a new party called Hlas-SD in 2020. The two parties came together to form a government in 2023, but Fico has been at odds with Kazimir due to the party split. Kazimir, who's term as central bank governor expired on Sunday, was sentenced on Thursday to a 200,000 euro ($226,940) fine for bribery. The central bank chief, who has denied wrongdoing, has rejected the verdict and said he would appeal to a higher court. Fico, speaking at a news conference on Sunday, said he had labelled Kazimir as a "political traitor" because of his disloyalty to the SMER-SSD party not because of his conviction in the bribery case. Fico said he respected the right of coalition partner Hlas-SD to nominate the governor, under their coalition agreements. "I think that we have the right as a party (SMER-SSD) that will be important in the vote, to say if this person suits it or not," Fico said. "And we have a number of principal reasons that make us say that Peter Kazimir is not the right candidate for NBS governor. Hlas-SD must come up with someone else," he said. Slovak central bank chiefs are nominated by the government, approved by parliament and appointed by the president. Fico has criticised the judge over the Kazimir bribery ruling. The court has declined to comment. Under Slovak law, Kazimir can remain a governor unless there is a final conviction of a crime. He also stays in his post past the end of his term until a new governor is appointed. Kazimir has not said publicly if he was seeking a second term. ($1 = 0.8813 euros)
Mint
2 days ago
- Business
- Mint
ECB Officials Ready to Keep Working With Convicted Colleague
(Bloomberg) -- European Central Bank policymakers are prepared to keep working with their colleague Peter Kazimir despite his conviction for bribery this week, according to people familiar with their thinking. While officials consider the guilty verdict unpleasant and are mindful of the reputational damage it could bring for the ECB, they want to see the outcome of his appeal against the Slovak court ruling, said the people, who asked not to be identified reflecting on confidential debates. Kazimir intends to challenge his conviction in the case, which dates back to his time as finance minister, and won't resign as Slovakia's central-bank chief, according to his lawyer. That's despite the 56-year-old's term ending on June 1. He'll remain in temporary charge until the government can agree on a successor, though could be removed if a higher court confirms his guilt. For now, Kazimir is expected to attend next week's Governing Council meeting in Frankfurt, the people said. He won't have a vote, however, due to the ECB's rotational system. An ECB spokesperson declined to comment. The situation comes at an awkward time for the Frankfurt-based institution, which faces tough decisions on how to steer the euro zone through President Donald Trump's reordering of global trade. They're ready to cut interest rates again on June 5, but less sure thereafter with inflation likely to slow in the near term but at risk of surging later on. Kazimir's trial isn't the first against one of the ECB's own. Malta's central-bank chief Edward Scicluna asked the ECB last July if he could step aside while a court case against him for fraud is pending. His deputy has attended Governing Council meetings since. Former Latvian central-bank head Ilmars Rimsevics, meanwhile, fought accusations of bribery while in office through 2019. His trial started weeks before his term ended and he was given a six-year prison sentence in 2023 — a ruling he's still appealing. ECB President Christine Lagarde was herself convicted of negligence by a Paris court in 2016 over her handling of a multi-million-euro dispute during her time as French finance minister almost a decade earlier. She wasn't given any punishment. Kazimir's conviction adds to arguments that a career in politics, rather than academia, leaves officials more exposed to scandals. The issue is facing particular scrutiny in a year that could mark the biggest personnel shakeup at the ECB since 2019. Austria has already appointed former Labor and Economy Minister Martin Kocher to succeed Robert Holzmann at the helm of its central bank. Permanent replacements in other countries including Slovenia, the Netherlands and Portugal have yet to be named. More stories like this are available on
Bloomberg
2 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
ECB Officials Ready to Keeping Working With Convicted Colleague
By , Jan Bratanic, and Jasmina Kuzmanovic Save European Central Bank policymakers are prepared to keep working with their colleague Peter Kazimir despite his conviction for bribery this week, according to people familiar with their thinking. While officials consider the guilty verdict unpleasant and are mindful of the reputational damage it could bring for the ECB, they want to see the outcome of his appeal against the Slovak court ruling, said the people, who asked not to be identified reflecting on confidential debates.
Irish Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
ECB governing council member convicted of bribery
Peter Kažimír, governor of the National Bank of Slovakia and a member of the European Central Bank's governing council, was convicted of bribery on Thursday and fined €200,000, just days before his term is due to expire. Despite the ruling, Mr Kažimír, an old political ally of Slovakia's prime minister Robert Fico, is expected to remain as the country's central bank governor beyond the scheduled end of his six-year term at the start of June. The verdict can be appealed and does not force him from office. Before Thursday, Slovak lawmakers were deadlocked over whether to reappoint him. Mr Kažimír will continue to take part in ECB rate-setting meetings, with the next decision on June 5th. Mr Kažimír, who served as finance minister under a previous Fico administration, did not attend the court hearing. In a pre-recorded statement, he denied wrongdoing and pledged to appeal against any conviction. READ MORE Presiding judge Milan Cisarik ruled that Mr Kažimír would face a one-year prison sentence should he fail to pay the fine. Prosecutors had sought prison, accusing Mr Kažimír of acting as an intermediary in the payment of a bribe to a former senior tax official while serving as finance minister. The National Bank of Slovakia said on Thursday that it took note of the verdict against its governor, who is currently on a work trip to Hong Kong. 'The bank continues to operate without restrictions and carries out its functions in full,' it added. The case against Kažimír almost collapsed last year after Fico's government pushed through contentious amendments to the criminal code, including a shortened statute of limitations. However, it was revived when the prosecution argued that the alleged bribery offence harmed the financial interests of the EU, placing it outside the reach of the domestic legislation. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited
