U.S. President Joe Biden has nominated former Mastercard Inc. CEO Ajay Banga as the next chief of the World Bank, the White House said Thursday.
The Washington-based organization will accept recommendations for a successor to outgoing President David Malpass until March 29, but Banga is likely to be the top candidate as successive World Bank presidents have been from the United States, the largest contributor.
Biden said in a statement that Banga has "critical experience mobilizing public-private resources to tackle the most urgent challenges of our time, including climate change."
"Raised in India, Ajay has a unique perspective on the opportunities and challenges facing developing countries," he added.
The multilateral development bank decided Wednesday to pick a new president by early May. Malpass said last week he will leave the post by the end of June.
Malpass, appointed by former President Donald Trump, faced criticism last year for declining to say at a conference whether he accepted the scientific consensus on climate change.
