Lagarde’s BIS stipend reignites questions over ECB pay rules
European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde has come under renewed scrutiny after disclosing that she receives about 140,000 euros a year from the Bank for International Settlements for serving on its board, even though ECB staff rules prohibit employees from taking third‑party payments linked to their official duties. The payment, worth 130,457 Swiss francs in 2025, was revealed in a written response to German MEP Fabio De Masi and another lawmaker, marking the first time Lagarde has confirmed the amount she earns from the BIS role. The BIS does not publish individual board fees, and the remuneration does not appear in the ECB’s annual accounts as a separate line, which has fueled internal criticism at the eurozone central bank.
According to the ECB’s staff rules, employees may not accept payments from third parties “in respect of the performance of their professional duties,” with any such funds required to be paid to the institution instead. Lagarde, however, is not formally covered by the staff rules and is instead bound by a separate code of conduct for high‑level ECB officials, a distinction the bank has cited in response to questions over why the president can receive a stipend that would be barred for regular staff. Some employees have used internal forums to complain about what they view as a double standard, arguing that the BIS board position is tied directly to Lagarde’s role at the ECB and should therefore fall under the same ethical constraints as those applied to rank‑and‑file personnel.
The controversy comes against a backdrop of broader dissatisfaction within the institution, where staff surveys and committee letters in recent years have flagged concerns over management style, transparency and workload pressures under Lagarde’s leadership. It also follows separate reporting that estimated her total annual compensation at around 726,000 euros once housing and other allowances and outside remuneration such as BIS fees are included, significantly above the 466,000‑euro base salary listed in the ECB’s public documents. While Reuters and other outlets have noted they cannot independently verify every element of the Financial Times’ analysis, the questions now being raised in the European Parliament and inside the ECB risk intensifying debate over how rigorously the eurozone’s top monetary official should be held to the institution’s own standards of probity.
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