19.6.2006
 
Professor Zvi Eckstein takes up his appointment as Deputy Governor of the Bank of Israel
 
Professor Zvi Eckstein has taken up his appointment as Deputy Governor of the Bank of Israel. Professor Eckstein, who had an introductory meeting this morning with the members of the Bank’s management, will be responsible for the following areas: the Monetary Department, the Foreign Exchange Activity Department, the Foreign Currency Department, the Financial Stability Area, and the State Loans Administration. He will also be a member of the narrow monetary forum that discusses the setting of the monthly interest-rate.
Israel-born Professor Eckstein graduated in economics from Tel Aviv University, and received his doctorate in economics from the University of Minnesota. Throughout his years of academic activity Professor Eckstein was awarded many prizes and grants to carry out research in economics from a wide range of sources, including the US National Science Foundation, Yale University, Tel Aviv University, the German-Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research and Development, and the Israel Science Fund.
Professor Eckstein served as economic advisor and carried out consultancy projects in the fields of macroeconomics and the capital market for the Bank of Israel, the Ministry of Finance and other government ministries, and since 1991 has been Chairman of the Investment Committee of banks’ provident funds and mutual funds––in 1992–93 he served as Chairman of the Investment Committee and Director of LHAK mutual funds of Bank Hapoalim; in 1993–98 and since 2003 as Chairman of the Investment Committee and Director of the provident funds of the Mercantile-Discount Bank; and in 1998–2001 as Chairman of the Investment Committee and Director of the provident funds of Bank Leumi.
The Governor of the Bank of Israel, Professor Stanley Fischer, today welcomed Professor Eckstein on his taking up his position, saying that he had extensive experience, commendable achievements, and proven ability acknowledged world wide in the fields of monetary and macroeconomic policy, Israel’s economy, and labor economics, and will doubtless make a significant contribution to the Bank and its activities.
 
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