John William Crow | The Canadian Encyclopedia

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John William Crow

John William Crow, economist and governor of the Band of Canada (b at London, Eng 22 Jan 1937).

John William Crow, economist and governor of the Band of Canada (b at London, Eng 22 Jan 1937). He succeeded Gerald Bouey in 1987 as the Bank of Canada's fifth governor. After service with the Royal Air Force (1956-58), Crow attended Oxford, where he studied philosophy, politics and economics. In 1961 he joined the staff of the International Monetary Fund in Washington, where he served in a variety of positions in its Western Hemisphere Division. After joining the Bank of Canada in 1973, he became chief of its research department in 1974.

Appointed an adviser to the governor in 1979 and a deputy governor in 1981, Crow became senior deputy governor in 1984. As the crucial instrument of Canada's monetary policy, the bank under Crow was generally believed to be inclined to pursue Bouey's dedication to the suppression of inflation, even at the cost of high interest rates. His 7-year term as governor remained consistent in this course. He left the bank in 1994 to pursue a career in private business, joining the huge investment firm Lévesque-Beaubien.