Gita Gopinath, the First Deputy Managing Director (FDMD) of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), will step down from her role in August 2025 to return to academia at Harvard University, the IMF announced. She will take on the newly established position of the Gregory and Ania Coffey Professor of Economics at Harvard.
Gopinath, who joined the IMF in 2019 as Chief Economist, became the first woman to hold that position. She was promoted to First Deputy Managing Director in January 2022, making her the Fund’s No. 2 official.
Her nearly seven-year-long tenure at the IMF was marked by key contributions during some of the most turbulent times in recent global economic history, including the COVID-19 pandemic, debt crises in developing nations, and disruptions in global trade and supply chains.
Confirming her departure, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said a successor will be named “in due course”.
Gopinath announced her decision in a post on X, saying, “After nearly 7 amazing years at the IMF, I have decided to return to my academic roots. On September 1, 2025, I will rejoin @HarvardEcon as the inaugural Gregory and Ania Coffey Professor of Economics. I am truly grateful for my time at @IMFnews, first as Chief Economist and then as First Deputy Managing Director.”
She added, “I have had the privilege of working closely with the IMF’s brilliant and committed staff, colleagues in management, the Executive Board, and country authorities. I am especially thankful to @KGeorgieva and her predecessor, @Lagarde, for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to serve the IMF’s membership during a period of unprecedented challenges. I now return to my roots in academia, where I look forward to continuing to push the research frontier in international finance and macroeconomics to address global challenges, and to training the next generation of economists.”
After nearly 7 amazing years at the IMF, I have decided to return to my academic roots. On September 1, 2025, I will rejoin @HarvardEcon as the inaugural Gregory and Ania Coffey Professor of Economics. I am truly grateful for my time at @IMFnews, first as Chief Economist and then…
— Gita Gopinath (@GitaGopinath) July 21, 2025
Before joining the IMF, Gopinath was the John Zwaanstra Professor of International Studies and Economics at Harvard University. She had first come to Harvard as a visiting professor in 2005. She will now resume her place on the Harvard faculty this September, returning from long-term public service leave.
Her return has been welcomed by Harvard’s academic community. David M. Cutler, dean of social science and Otto Eckstein Professor of Applied Economics at Harvard, said, as quoted by The Harvard Gazette: “Gita’s academic work has fundamentally shaped our understanding of exchange rates, international capital flows, and the global financial architecture. Having her back strengthens our standing as a top university for international macroeconomics. She is also an exceptional teacher and intellectual partner. We can’t wait to welcome her home.”
As Chief Economist, Gopinath led the IMF’s research department and oversaw the World Economic Outlook, a key publication that informs policy decisions across countries. She also co-authored a global pandemic policy proposal to expand vaccine access and developed the Integrated Policy Framework that forms the basis of IMF advice to member countries on international capital flows.
In her current role as First Deputy Managing Director, she has overseen several departments handling fiscal affairs, strategy, and research, and has led the Fund’s engagement on global economic monitoring. She played a key role in IMF programs for countries such as Argentina and Ukraine and represented the organisation at G7 and G20 meetings.
Paying tribute to her contribution, Georgieva said, “[Gita’s] analytical rigor was paired with practical policy advice to the membership during an especially challenging period, which included the pandemic, wars, the cost-of-living crisis, and major shifts in the global trading system. Gita’s departure will be a loss for the Fund, but a gain for Harvard and for the many students and faculty who will benefit from her experience, knowledge, and passion for learning.”
Former IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, now President of the European Central Bank, also praised Gopinath, saying, “I am the guilty one who raided Harvard University from one of their top talents, Gita Gopinath, a class-act economist, and a wonderful person, gracious, kind, elegant and of course extremely smart. She also proved a great leader at the IMF, a demanding institution, also full of smart economists.”
Founded in 1945, the IMF supports economic stability in 191 member countries and offers financial assistance during critical shortages. Gopinath said, “It has been an opportunity of a lifetime to work with my incredible colleagues at the IMF and to serve the global community.”
