NCUA Taps Monaco as Chief Economist

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Sept. 15, 2015) – National Credit Union Administration Board Chairman Debbie Matz today announced the selection of Ralph Monaco as the agency’s Chief Economist.

“Those who have worked with Ralph know that he is well-suited to assume the Chief Economist position,” Matz said. “As the senior economist at NCUA for the last four years, Ralph has demonstrated superb skills and a strong commitment to accurate, comprehensive economic analysis. I congratulate Ralph and am confident NCUA and the credit union system will benefit from his briefings and recommendations.”

Monaco joined NCUA as a senior economist in 2011. He succeeds John Worth, who left the agency in August.

Prior to joining NCUA, Monaco was Director of the Office of Macroeconomic Analysis in the Office of Economic Policy at the U.S. Treasury Department. He also has served at the President’s Council of Economic Advisers and the U.S. Agriculture Department. He has worked as a researcher at the University of Maryland and was an adjunct member of the graduate faculty at the university’s economics department.

Monaco holds a doctorate in economics from the University of Maryland and a bachelor’s degree, with highest honors, from the College of William and Mary.

NCUA’s Office of the Chief Economist supports NCUA’s safety and soundness goals by developing and distributing economic intelligence, including NCUA’s Economic Update video series and the NCUA Quarterly U.S. Map Review. The office also enhances NCUA’s understanding of emerging microeconomic and macroeconomic risks by producing meaningful and robust modeling and risk identification tools and participating in agency and interagency policy development.