Andrés Velasco

Andrés Velasco is a prominent Chilean economist, academic, and public figure known for his influential contributions to both economic policy and global public affairs. Born in Santiago in 1960, he went into exile during Chile's military dictatorship and later pursued his education in the United States, earning degrees from Yale and a PhD in Economics from Columbia University. Velasco has held distinguished academic positions at institutions such as Harvard, Columbia, and New York University, and he currently serves as Dean of the School of Public Policy at the London School of Economics, a role he has held since 2018. His academic work focuses on macroeconomics, development, and public finance, and he has authored a large body of research in both scholarly and popular outlets. From 2006 to 2010, Velasco served as Chile’s Minister of Finance under President Michelle Bachelet, where he implemented a countercyclical fiscal policy that earned international praise for its prudence and effectiveness during the global financial crisis. His use of sovereign wealth funds and a structural surplus rule became a model for fiscal responsibility in resource-rich countries. After his time in government, he ran for president in Chile's 2013 primaries and later co-founded the centrist political party Ciudadanos. Velasco has also played a leading role in global economic governance, contributing to G20 panels, advising international financial institutions, and participating in high-level policy commissions. Beyond economics and politics, he has written two novels in Spanish, reflecting a long-standing interest in literature and public discourse. Through his diverse career as a policymaker, academic, writer, and political leader, Andrés Velasco has become a leading voice on the intersection of economics, governance, and democratic development.