The Chairman of the Swiss National Bank’s Governing Board, Thomas Jordan, has informed the Bank Council that he will step down from his position at the end of September 2024.

Thomas Jordan, born in 1963, joined the SNB in 1997. As Head of Research, he initially played a pivotal role in the development of the new monetary policy strategy introduced at the end of 1999. In 2004 he moved to Department III as Alternate Member of the Governing Board, and in May 2007 he was appointed Member of the Governing Board. His time as Head of Department III came against the backdrop of the great financial crisis. His responsibilities included StabFund, the stabilisation fund created to take over illiquid assets from UBS.

At the beginning of 2010, Thomas Jordan took over the management of Department II as Vice Chairman of the Governing Board. In addition to the introduction of a macroprudential concept with the countercyclical capital buffer, he was heavily involved in the development of the ninth banknote series titled ‘The many facets of Switzerland’.

In January 2012, Thomas Jordan assumed the management of the SNB, initially on an ad interim basis and then from April 2012 as Chairman of the Governing Board and Head of Department I.

His time at the helm of the SNB coincided with a period characterised by an unusually large number of challenges, necessitating far-reaching monetary policy measures to ensure price stability and maintain financial stability in different economic situations.

At the beginning of 2015, with the discontinuation of the minimum exchange rate of the Swiss franc against the euro, the SNB was able to maintain control over and safeguard the effectiveness of its monetary policy.

During the severe downturn in the global economy as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, the SNB managed to ensure price stability with extensive measures such as the newly created SNB COVID-19 refinancing facility.

In spring 2023, the crisis at Credit Suisse presented an acute threat to financial stability in Switzerland. The SNB provided liquidity assistance on a historically unprecedented scale in order to ultimately enable the acquisition of Credit Suisse by UBS.

The Chairman of the Governing Board, Thomas Jordan, said:

‘Having met the various challenges of recent years, now is the right time for me to step down. It has been a great privilege to serve the SNB and the interests of the country as a whole. I would like to thank the Bank Council, the Governing Board and the SNB’s staff for the excellent and collegial working relationship. My thanks also go to the Federal Council, Parliament and the public for their great trust in the SNB and for safeguarding its mandate and its independence.’