Miroslav Singer named new Czech central bank chief

Jun 18, 2010, 12:57 GMT

Prague - Czech President Vaclav Klaus on Friday appointed Miroslav Singer as the new head of the Czech Republic's central bank.

Singer, 42, on July 1 succeeds outgoing governor Zdenek Tuma, who decided to step down seven months early.

Singer has served as the central bank's vice-governor since February 2005, and his economic views are seen as close to those of the eurosceptic and free-market president.

He is not considered a proponent of a speedy switchover to the euro.

Klaus called on Singer to 'very resolutely' stand up to financial sector regulation as a solution to the global financial crisis.

'We live in difficult times. We live at a time when banks matter very much,' Klaus said during a ceremony televised on the CT24 news channel.

Tuma, who decided to leave by June 30, has held the post since 2000. His second six-year term was to last until February 12, 2011.

He said he decided to resign early as he wanted to limit uncertainty because half of the bank's remaining six board members also faced a changeover early next year.

The Czech Republic, which joined the European Union in 2004, has its own monetary policy and currency, the koruna.

The country has abandoned 2010 as the target date for adopting the euro which Prague had set in 2006. The emerging three-party centre-right government agreed not to set a new date for the time being.