The new man who will vote on South Africa’s interest rates

The Reserve Bank has appointed Franz Ruch, a former World Bank economist, to its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).

This makes Ruch the seventh member of the committee that sets South Africa’s monetary policy, the largest it has been in years.

On Thursday, 1 October, the Reserve Bank announced that Ruch has been appointed as an Adviser to the Governors, which also makes him an MPC member.

“A seasoned economist, Ruch brings his vast monetary policy expertise to the position,” the Reserve Bank said.

Ruch holds a PhD from the University of Stellenbosch and a Master’s degree from Oxford University.

“He joins the SARB from the World Bank, where he served as a Senior Economist and led and contributed to research, technical analysis and writing for various publications,” the central bank said.

Prior to joining the World Bank, Ruch served in the Reserve Bank’s Economic Research Department.

In this role, he developed and operated economic models and contributed to the Monetary Policy Review.

Now, Ruch will become the seventh member of the MPC, joining Governor Lesetja Kganyago, Rashad Cassim, Nomfundo Tshazibana, Mampho Modise, David Fowkes, and Konstantin Makrelov.

With Ruch added, the MPC is now at capacity under statutory policy, which allows up to seven internal members appointed from the Reserve Bank.

The MPC was formally established in 1999 to set interest rate policy following South Africa’s adoption of an inflation targeting approach to monetary policy.

Between 1999 and 2010, the committee that set interest rates was larger, sometimes featuring as many as nine members, including executive staff and senior economic advisers.

Under former Reserve Bank Governor Gill Marcus, the committee size was standardised down to between 5 and 6 members.

This focused governance around senior leadership and internal economic research units.

During Kganyago’s tenure, the MPC structure stabilised around the Governor, Deputy Governors, the chief economist or head of economic research, and senior advisers.

Ruch’s appointment to the MPC is the second seen this year, with Makrelov having joined in May 2026 following Chris Loewald’s retirement in March.