Press Release No. 22/187

IMF Managing Director Appoints Krishna Srinivasan as Director of the Asia and Pacific Department

June 8, 2022

Washington, DC: Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), announced today her intention to appoint Krishna Srinivasan as Director of the Asia and Pacific Department (APD). Mr. Srinivasan’s appointment as APD Director becomes effective on June 22, 2022. He will succeed Changyong Rhee, whose retirement from the Fund was announced on March 23, 2022.

Mr. Srinivasan, an Indian national, has more than 27 years of Fund experience, starting in the Economist Program in 1994. He is currently a Deputy Director in APD, where he oversees the department’s surveillance work on a number of large and systemically important countries such as China and Korea, and smaller states in the Pacific such as Fiji and Vanuatu. He also oversees APD’s work on key ASEAN countries, namely Malaysia and Singapore, as well-advanced economies, including Australia and New Zealand. During the Global Financial Crisis, while in the Research Department (RES), Mr. Srinivasan led the Fund’s work on the G20 including the preparation of analytical notes for the meetings of the G20 Ministers and Leaders.

“Krishna is a highly regarded member of our Fund family and has made many important and innovative contributions to our mission throughout his career at the Fund. His appointment to the Director position is a culmination of his superior record of leadership across a wide range of departments, including African Department (AFR), European Department (EUR), Monetary and Capital Market Department (MCM), RES, Strategy, Policy and Review Department (SPR), and West Hemisphere Department (WHD). This range of work and experiences is reflective of his career during which he has worked on the full spectrum of the Fund’s membership from low-income countries, to emerging markets, and advanced economies,” said Ms. Georgieva.

“He has made his mark as a strategic thinker, innovator, and people manager. In fact, he was one of the first managers to receive the Fund’s Excellence in Leadership Award when it was inaugurated in 2010. That same year, he was also one of the first to receive the Fund’s Award for Extraordinary Effort, which speaks to Krishna’s willingness to go above and beyond to ensure that the Fund is providing the best service to its membership,” Ms. Georgieva added.

Mr. Srinivasan has been a thought leader on bringing climate into the Fund’s macroeconomic work, including through piloting disaster resilience strategies. He has worked on sovereign debt restructuring, access to capital markets, private sector involvement in resolving financial crises, and lending into arrears. He was also an early advocate for a facility to support members with longer-term structural reforms needs, which was an important consideration in the design of the Resilience and Sustainability Trust.

“Over the years, he has built an outstanding reputation as a first-rate collaborator and trusted advisor in his relationships with Fund colleagues and country authorities alike. He is known for fostering an open dialogue as the way to building strong relationships and achieving traction with country authorities. Krishna has also helped to nurture the careers of many Fund staff as a coach and mentor. As Director, I know that he will continue to provide excellent leadership and advice to our membership and to staff within and outside APD,” Ms. Georgieva stated.

Prior to joining the Fund, Mr. Srinivasan was an Assistant Professor of Economics and International Finance at Indiana-Purdue University and a consultant at the World Bank in DC and the Center for Policy Research and Planning Commission in New Delhi. His wide research on Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean, and on climate and other economic and development issues has appeared in books, academic journals, and media publications.

Mr. Srinivasan holds a PhD (Honors) in Economics from Indiana University, a Master’s in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics, and a Bachelor’s (Honors) in Economics from the University of Delhi.

“I look forward to working with Krishna to build on the Fund’s strategy for Asia and the Pacific. Please join me in congratulating him on this important appointment,” Ms. Georgieva concluded.