The Bank of Canada has appointed an economist with Standard & Poor’s as a special advisor to governor Mark Carney, the central bank said Tuesday.
The BoC said that David Beers, currently global head, sovereign and international public finance ratings at S&P, will serve an 18-month term in the role, beginning Feb. 1, 2012. Beers is an expert on risk and credit ratings of sovereign, regional and local governments, government-related entities, and multilateral development banks.
He takes on the position of special adviser, which was created back in 1998, to bring outside perspectives to the central bank. In that role, he will participate on its Monetary Policy Review Committee, which advises the governing council on monetary policy issues and decisions; and on the Financial System Review Committee, which reviews global and Canadian economic trends and advises the governing council on financial system policy issues. Beers will succeed Tim Hodgson, who was appointed special adviser starting in September 2010.
“David Beers is a highly-regarded economist and one of the world’s leading authorities on sovereign risk. His wealth of experience will be invaluable to the Bank as we build further our capacity to assess macro-financial vulnerabilities,” said Carney. “David’s expertise and unique perspective on global capital markets will also augment the Bank’s contributions to global regulatory reform.”
Before joining Standard & Poor’s in 1990, Beers worked as an independent consultant and as an economist at various investment dealers and financial institutions, including Salomon Brothers Inc., Bankers Trust Company, and Marine Midland Bank. He holds a Master of Science degree in economics from the London School of Economics and a Bachelor of Arts in foreign affairs from the University of Virginia.