Christine Lagarde

Christine Lagarde was managing director of the International Monetary Fund from July 5, 2011 until Sept. 12, 2019. On Nov. 1, 2019, she assumed office as president of the European Central Bank. Lagarde is the first female finance minister of a G-7 economy, the first woman to head the IMF, and the first female president of the European Central Bank.

Lagarde was born on January 1, 1956 in Paris, France. As a teenager, she was a member of the French national synchronized swimming team. After completing high school in 1973, she attended the Holton-Arms School for a year in Bethesda, Maryland. During that year, she was a congressional assistant intern for U.S. Representative William Cohen. She then graduated from law school at University Paris X and earned a master's degree from the Political Science Institute in Aix en Provence.

After being admitted as a lawyer to the Paris Bar, Lagarde joined the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie as an associate. She later became the first female chairman of that firm. She joined the French government in June 2005 as Minister for Foreign Trade and then as Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries. In June 2007, she became France's Finance and Economy Minister. From July to December 2008, she also chaired the ECOFIN Council, which brings together economics and finance ministers of the European Union.

In December 2016, Lagarde was found guilty of negligence for her role in a €403 million arbitration deal, but was not sentenced.