Where a central banker was born and where they went to school can tell you exactly how they’ll vote on interest rates.
March 26, 2026
Original Paper
Diversity and Dissent on the Board: Evidence from the Banco de la República of Colombia
SSRN · 6415918
The Takeaway
While we assume monetary policy is a cold, data-driven calculation, this research shows that being born in a capital city or having a specific educational pedigree creates a measurable bias in hawkishness. Personal background shifts high-level economic decisions in ways that standard financial models ignore.
From the abstract
This article provides the first empirical analysis of the relationship between diversity and monetary policy dissent on the Board of Directors of the Banco de la República of Colombia. Using a novel dataset of Board votes spanning 2007-2024, we estimate a forward-looking Taylor rule augmented with Board composition characteristics. Boards with more women, economics PhDs, and U.S.-educated members tend to set lower policy rates, whereas Boards with more Bogotá-born members appear more hawkish. We