Luc Coene
Luc Coene | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 11, 1947 Ghent, Belgium |
| Died | January 5, 2017 (aged 69) |
| Occupation | Economist |
| Years active | 1973–2017 |
| Known for | Governor of the National Bank of Belgium (2011–2015) |
Luc Coene (11 March 1947 – 5 January 2017) was a prominent Belgian economist who held the position of Governor at the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) from April 2011 until March 2015.
Education
Originating from Ghent, Coene completed his economics degree at Ghent University in 1970. The following year, he obtained a postgraduate qualification specializing in European economic integration from the College of Europe.
Career
Coene’s professional journey commenced at the NBB in 1973, where he contributed to both the Research and Foreign Departments up to 1979. Subsequently, he took on the role of Assistant to the Belgian Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), a position he held until 1985. Within the Belgian government, he occupied significant advisory posts such as Deputy chef de cabinet to the Minister of Finance and later Chef de cabinet to the Vice-Premier and Minister for the Budget between 1985 and 1988.
Following a period as a visiting scholar at the IMF, Coene joined the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs (ECFIN) as an economic adviser from 1989 to 1992. He then returned to the NBB, providing counsel to the head of the Foreign Department until 1995.
Between 1995 and 1999, Coene served as a Senator representing the VLD. He subsequently became Chef de cabinet to Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt and Secretary to the Council of Ministers from 1999 to 2001. From 2001 through 2003, he was appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors at the Prime Minister’s Chancellery.
In 2003, Coene was named Director and Deputy Governor of the NBB before ascending to Governor in April 2011. He remained in this capacity until March 2015 when Jan Smets succeeded him. Additionally, he was a member of the Advisory Board for the Itinera Institute think tank.
In March 2015, Coene became part of the ECB Supervisory Board, playing a role in overseeing banking supervision across Europe.