In the summer of 2024, the Deutsche Bundesbank’s Representative Office in New York underwent a staff overhaul, with three out of four positions newly filled (on the picture from left: Simon Keller, Delia Rodriguez, Karolin Czerny, Johannes Ludwig).

In August, Simon Keller took over from Jens Reich as Head of the Representative Office. He started his Bundesbank career as a trainee in 2009, worked for many years in Directorate General Markets as well as in the offices of Executive Board members Joachim Nagel, Joachim Wuermeling and Sabine Mauderer, and spent a year and a half at the European Central Bank as part of a secondment. Working in the Representative Office and living in the United States are not new to him – he was already seconded to New York from 2014 to 2016, and from 2004 to 2006 he studied on the US East Coast.

In September, Karolin Czerny was added to the team, assuming the role of analyst. After completing her dual study programme at the Bundesbank in Hachenburg from 2017 to 2020, she worked in risk control for four years. Her tasks lie primarily in researching, analysing and preparing data on economic and fiscal policy developments in the United States, Canada and Mexico. For her, working in New York is a unique opportunity to represent the Bundesbank internationally and for personal and professional development.

Delia Rodriguez, the new office manager, already joined the team in June 2024. She began her training as an office assistant at the Bundesbank in 2009 and recently worked for several years as an assistant to the Director General Audit. Her love of working in an international environment became evident during a secondment to the ECB, where she worked as an assistant to ECB Governing Council member Sabine Lautenschläger. Her tasks range from organisational tasks in the Representative Office through bookkeeping to the coordination of appointments when members of the Executive Board visit New York.

Johannes Ludwig has already been Deputy Head of the Representative Office since 2022. He joined the Bundesbank in 2016 as a trainee and then worked in Directorate General Financial Stability. His tasks include reporting on the United States and Canada, networking with contacts from the Federal Reserve, supervisory authorities, banks, associations and think tanks, and attending events such as conferences and panel discussions. He particularly appreciates the opportunities for personal dialogue in his work and the high concentration of economic expertise the city offers.

The team is particularly excited about the upcoming US elections in November, which are not only dominating the news stateside and worldwide but also impacting on the Representative Office’s tasks, which include providing information on current developments and following debates as well as responding to queries from the United States and Germany. In addition, the staff of the Representative Office represent the Bundesbank externally, maintain an extensive network of contacts in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and coordinate visits by members of the Executive Board and other Bundesbank executives.