On 3 May 2023, Ajay Banga was selected as the 14th President of the World Bank for a five-year term beginning in June 2023. This marks a historic moment, as he will be the first Indian-American to hold this prestigious position in the Bank’s 77-year history.

Banga has an impressive background in the finance industry, having previously served as the CEO of Mastercard and Vice Chairman at General Atlantic. Under his leadership, Mastercard launched the Priceless Planet Coalition in 2020, a group of nearly 100 companies committed to investing in the environment to prevent its deterioration.

But that’s not all – Banga is also a co-founder of The Cyber Readiness Institute and serves as vice-chair of the Economic Club of New York. He was also a member of President Barack Obama’s Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity.

Banga’s journey to this point began in India, where he started his career with Nestle before moving on to work with PepsiCo and Citigroup. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University and a Post Graduate Program in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

Let’s congratulate Mr. Banga on this incredible achievement and wish him all the best in his new role as President of the World Bank!