Former Reserve Bank of India Governor Urjit Patel appointed IMF executive director

Former Reserve Bank of India Governor Urjit Patel has been appointed as executive director at the International Monetary Fund, a government statement showed on Friday (August 29, 2025).

Mr. Patel has been appointed for a period of three years.

He took over as the RBI Governor from Raghuram Rajan in September 2016 and resigned from the post in December 2018, citing personal reasons.

The resignation came after a prolonged public spat between the RBI and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Mr. Patel, an economist and former RBI Governor, to the post of Executive Director, International Monetary Fund, for a period of three years, said the order dated August 28.

Mr. Patel was the first RBI Governor since 1990 to step down before completion of his tenure.

He had earlier served at the International Monetary Fund.

Mr. Patel, who had also served as RBI’s Deputy Governor, was on deputation from the IMF to the central bank during 1996-1997, and in that capacity he provided advice on development of the debt market, banking sector reforms, pension fund reforms, and evolution of the foreign exchange market.

He was a consultant to the Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs) from 1998 to 2001. He has also had other assignments in the public and private sectors.