Centeno could be “great bank of Portugal governor”

The outgoing governor of the Bank of Portugal Carlos Costa says that Mário Centeno could be a “great governor” to lead the country’s central bank.

In an interview with the weekend newspaper Expresso, Costa said that Portugal’s current finance minister and head of Eurogroup “has all the right conditions to be a great governor of the Bank of Portugal”.
“He would take over at an institution that has been completely overhauled, with greater competencies, a very strong structure, sense of mission and a very clear focus”, said Carlos Costa.
This apparent endorsement for Centeno comes on the heels of a week in which it was revealed that the finance minister may not remain in the government indefinitely and will likely leave his post after signing off on the supplementary budget which is expected in June.
Carlos Costa who is said to have a difficult relationship with Mário Centeno is earmarked to leave his post in front of the central bank in July.
However, Prime Minister António Costa, remained tight-lipped when asked his opinion over the weekend if he thought Mário Centeno would be the best candidate to front the central bank.
But Expresso reported that despite the relationship between the prime minister and finance minister having seen better day, the two have had conversations about the possibility of Mário Centeno replacing Carlos Costa at the bank.
And in the running for the top job is the current Minister of the Economy Pedro Siza Vieira who is seen as the preferred candidate of the prime minister.