Bank of Portugal defends Mário Centeno’s €2.2 million retirement deal
Bank of Portugal (Banco de Portugal) Governor Álvaro Santos Pereira stated that a retirement agreement with his predecessor, Mário Centeno, will save the institution €2.2 million in future salary and social security costs. The Governor emphasized that the pension will be paid by the bank's own pension fund and will not cost taxpayers anything. Tax-paying residents should note that the agreement settles the former Governor's status as he transitions out of his remaining consultant role.
- Governor of Banco de Portugal (2020–present)
- Former: Minister of Finance (2015–2020), President of the Eurogroup (2018–2020)
- Party: Independent (PS-affiliated)
- Background: Economist (PhD, Harvard)
Mário José Gomes de Freitas Centeno (born 1966) is Portugal's central bank governor and one of the country's most internationally recognized economic figures. As Finance Minister under António Costa's first PS government, he became known as "Cristiano Ronaldo of European finance" for turning Portugal's deficit into a surplus while reversing austerity.
He was elected president of the Eurogroup (the informal body of euro area finance ministers) in 2018 — the first Portuguese to hold the role. Since becoming Governor of Banco de Portugal in 2020, he sits on the ECB's Governing Council and oversees Portuguese banking supervision and financial stability.
Álvaro Santos Pereira is a Portuguese economist who served as Minister of Economy from 2011 to 2013. He is a frequent public commentator on economic and public-policy issues and has used X and LinkedIn to call for radical changes to Portugal’s disaster preparedness after recent storms, so residents and policymakers often pay attention to his proposals.
