The chief economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced Tuesday he will resign and return to academia early next year. Raghuram Rajan, who has held the position since 2003, said he was asked by the IMF to stay for a second three-year term, but the University of Chicago, where he had worked as a professor, indicated that it would not be able to extend his leave of absence. “It is with regret, therefore, that I have told the [IMF's] managing director that I would like to return to the University of Chicago by early next year. I don't use the word ‘regret' lightly because I have enjoyed every minute that I have spent here,” Rajan said in a statement. IMF managing director Rodrigo Rato praised Rajan's contributions to the global lending institution. Rajan has been “an articulate and influential voice of the fund on the need to seize the opportunities presented by globalization while pointing to the emerging risks stemming from global imbalances and rising oil prices.” The IMF said a successor to Rajan will be named shortly.
