US Treasury official Malpass becomes only candidate for World Bank president

WASHINGTON -- The World Bank announced on Thursday that David Malpass, undersecretary for international affairs at the US Treasury Department, is the only candidate for the next president of the bank.

The bank's board of executive directors confirmed it received one nomination and that Malpass will be considered for the position. The period for submitting nominations closed on Thursday, and the bank expects to conclude the selection process before the spring meetings in April.

In January, the World Bank outlined the selection process for the next president to replace Jim Yong Kim, who suddenly announced an early departure from the multilateral development bank.

US President Donald Trump last month picked Malpass as the US candidate for the next World Bank chief, calling him "a strong advocate for accountability" at the bank.

Malpass, who has criticized the World Bank before, thanked the president for selecting him to lead "the world's premier development institution."

"I'm very optimistic that we can achieve breakthroughs to create growth abroad that will help us combat extreme poverty and increase economic opportunities in the developing world," Malpass said at an event at the White House last month.

Before joining the Trump administration, Malpass was an economic adviser to Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. He previously served as chief economist at the investment bank Bear Stearns.

Malpass will have to be approved by the World Bank's board of executive directors.