Rodrigo Rato made his mark abroad as a Latin American expert and at home by helping transform the Spanish economy into one of Europe's most successful.
Sharp-tongued but known for his dry sense of humor, the former Spanish economy minister was elected managing director of the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday as his political career at home ran out.
Rato, 55, was passed over to succeed former prime minister Jose Maria Aznar as leader of Spain's conservative Popular Party, which was unexpectedly defeated at the polls in March.
At the same time the IMF's top position was left prematurely vacant by Horst Koehler who decided to resign to vie for the German presidency.
From the start of the search to fill the post, Rato's name led the list of favorites. He accepted the nomination despite declaring in an interview last year: "I need something more manageable. The IMF job is an impossible one to do well."
A lawyer by training, Rato has an intimate knowledge of Latin America, where Spain has close business ties rooted in a common language and culture.
He has been described by IMF insiders as politically astute, a feature that will be useful in his dealings with the governments of the world.
One of his immediate tasks at the fund will be ensuring the restructuring of Argentina's US$88 billion in defaulted debt with private creditors and reform commitments by Buenos Aires sealed in a multi-billion dollar IMF loan pact.
Rato's Latin American expertise came to the fore during Argentina's meltdown in 2002, when Spanish businesses operating in the country were forced to write off billions of dollars in losses. Argentina is the IMF's third-largest debtor after Brazil and Turkey.
Rato stood by Argentina during the crisis, urging investors to stick with the country bound to recover from the crash.
At home, Rato steered economic policy from 1996 until he left office. He prepared Spain as a founding member of the euro zone by restraining spending.
Spain's record of 10 consecutive years of growth is the envy of many countries. The bulging budget deficit that the Popular Party inherited has been reduced to a small surplus in the last two years but unemployment is the highest in the EU.
Rato twice cut income taxes across the board and went most of the way to liberalize Spain's telecoms and energy industries despite opposition from powerful companies.
Until his domestic setbacks, Rato rarely disguised his ambition to become Spain's premier.
With a friendly, accessible face, thinning hair and a penchant for loud ties, Rato has been described by his political colleagues as prudent and pragmatic.
He entered politics in the 1970s by joining the Popular Alliance (AP), the right-wing political movement which became the Popular Party in 1989.
In 1979, he joined the AP's national executive and was its spokesman on the economy from 1984 to 1986, later becoming the Popular Party's assistant secretary-general and economic spokesman.
Rato's hobbies include skiing, yoga, cinema, theater and music, ranging from classical to Irish singer Van Morrison. He speaks excellent English, having earned an MBA at the University of California.
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