The resignation of Sergiu Cioclea as National Bank governor is negative news for the banking sector. The governors are not changed like gloves. It is a long-term tenure, economic expert Viorel Gârbu was quoted by IPN as saying in the talk show “Politics of Natalia Morari” on TV8 channel.
According to him, this message is no way positive as it couldn’t have appeared without a specific cause or a negative context that does not allow for delays. “Money likes calmness. Stability and continuity are needed,” said Viorel Gârbu. He noted the replacement of the governor in the pre-electoral period when the Republic of Moldova is in a rather tense period and many donors have a rather critical view on the developments in our country is not welcome. Sergiu Cioclea is the only high-ranking official who enjoyed international community’s trust and strong support that was shown on numerus occasions.
Analyst Victor Ciobanu said the resignation of Sergiu Cioclea as governor is a bad signal for the banking system and for the current government, but Cioclea reached particular agreements from the start, including with the government. “He was mandated to stabilize the banking system. He was probably told that from now on he should deal with the relations with the foreign partners and should not become involved in the theft of the US$ 1 billion. The theft wasn’t raised in the press briefing and I think the National Bank didn’t fulfil its commitments here,” stated the expert.
Victor Ciobanu said he does not agree with the fact that Sergiu Cioclea fulfilled his mandate, as the governor stated in the press briefing where he announced his resignation, as stabilization is not the only task of the central bank. “I think the National Bank didn’t carry out its duties related to monetary policies as we saw a very restrictive policy in the field that actually caused the economy to stagnate,” he noted.
On November 20, Sergiu Cioclea announced his resignation from the post of governor of the National Bank of Moldova as of November 30, 2018. The resignation was tendered to Speaker of Parliament Andrian Candu.
