Fabio Panetta elected BIS chair, to lead on CBDCs

Fabio Panetta has been elected chair of the Bank for International Settlements’ board of directors and will assume the role on June 3, 2026 for a three-year term. He succeeds François Villeroy de Galhau. Panetta currently serves as governor of the Bank of Italy. The BIS coordinates 63 member central banks and provides research, standards and forums used by national regulators.

Panetta has warned that unbacked crypto assets can pose risks to financial stability and has flagged large private stablecoins as a threat to monetary sovereignty. He has promoted a digital euro and argued that central bank digital currencies are needed as payments shift toward digital forms.

The election comes as the BIS completes a strategy review that will set its priorities for the coming years. The institution runs regional innovation hubs and programs studying tokenized assets, programmable money and new settlement technologies. BIS teams are examining how central bank-issued digital money could work with private systems and tokenized securities.

BIS research, committee recommendations and Basel standards inform national rules on banking, payments and financial stability. Panetta has specifically identified global stablecoins-tokens issued by large firms or used across multiple countries-as a concern for monetary policy and cross-border stability.

Work at the BIS on tokenized settlement and programmable payments examines technical and legal issues for projects that move real-world assets onto digital ledgers. Firms building settlement platforms or exploring integration with central bank digital money may continue to find technical research and engagement from BIS teams.

The BIS also named Gabriel Galípolo, head of the Central Bank of Brazil, as chair of the meeting of governors from September 2026. The BIS said it will publish the conclusions of its strategy review in the coming months, providing more detail on its priorities under Panetta’s chairmanship.