BIS appoints Peter Dittus as Secretary General

The Board of Directors of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) today announced the appointment of Peter Dittus as Secretary General for a five-year term. The appointment fills the vacancy being created by the retirement in December of Gunter D Baer, who has been Secretary General since 1994.

In his new role, Mr Dittus will head the General Secretariat, one of the Bank's three main departments. As a key member of the Bank's senior management team, he will have overall responsibility for the provision of corporate services within the BIS.

Mr Dittus joined the BIS in 1992 as an economist and since 1995 has assumed increasingly senior responsibilities in the Bank's administrative domain. In 2000, he was appointed Deputy Secretary General and became a member of the Bank's Executive Committee. Before coming to the BIS, he was an economist at the World Bank and the OECD. Mr Dittus holds a Doctorate in Economics from Saarbrücken University and Diplomas in Economics from Saarbrücken University and the University of Michigan. A German national, he is married with three children. His appointment takes effect on 1 January 2005.

BIS General Manager Malcolm Knight expressed his gratitude to Mr Baer for his years of service to the Bank. He welcomed the appointment of the new Secretary General, saying that "Mr Dittus brings to the role a broad range of competencies and a deep understanding of the strategic development of the BIS."