WASHINGTON, October 8, 2026— World Bank Group President Ajay Banga announced the appointment of David Vaillant as World Bank Group Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer. Vaillant has spent two decades at BNP Paribas leading finance and strategy functions and structuring landmark capital markets transactions for financial institutions, governments, and central banks across emerging and developed markets.
As CFO, Vaillant will be responsible for financial management, treasury operations, and risk management across a balance sheet deployed in more than 100 developing countries. He will lead bond issuance across IBRD, IDA, and IFC, which together raised close to $82 billion from international capital markets in FY26. He will also advance the Group’s private capital mobilization agenda, including developing new financing vehicles and instruments designed to attract private investors at scale.
“David has spent his career managing finance at scale and working closely with investors, governments, and central banks to build financial architecture that makes institutions deliver outsized impact,” Banga said. “This is the ideal combination of experience needed to run the World Bank Group’s finance function, manage risk, and expand the private capital we mobilize for development.”
Vaillant served most recently as Global Head of Finance, Strategy and Participations for BNP Paribas Asset Management. In that role he led the €5.1 billion acquisition of AXA Investment Managers, one of the largest deals in European asset management history, which created one of the continent’s largest asset managers with €1.6 trillion in client assets. He also developed its partnerships across the globe, notably in Asia and Latin America.
“I am deeply honored to join the World Bank Group and to serve its mission: end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity on a livable planet. The Group is ideally positioned to work with all stakeholders in emerging and developed markets to channel funding toward development objectives, while promoting strong risk management. I look forward to joining the World Bank Group’s highly regarded teams, under Ajay’s leadership,” Vaillant said.
Vaillant earlier served as Managing Director and Head of Banking for EMEA at BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking, where he actively contributed to the development of the firm’s franchise globally, and in emerging markets, across Africa, the Middle East and Asia. He also spearheaded the sovereign advisory practice, advising governments and central banks on complex transactions. Prior to BNP Paribas, Vaillant served at the Banque de France, and began his career as an attorney advising companies on cross-border transactions.
Beyond his executive roles, Vaillant has served on several boards as non-executive chair or director, notably with financial institutions in Asia and Latin America, and with listed and unlisted fintech companies. He has also taught finance, sustainable finance, and international macroeconomics at HEC School of Management and Sciences Po Paris, and serves on the Steering Board of the International Advisory Panel on Biodiversity Credits.
