The World Bank has approved David Malpass, a senior U.S. Treasury official, to be the next head of the lending arm of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Malpass, a long-time critic of global financial institutions, was approved unanimously by the 189-nation World Bank's executive board on April 5.
His five-year term starts April 9.
"Mr. Malpass brings experience in international affairs, finance and economic development," the bank said in a tweet following the vote.
A staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, the 63-year-old Malpass is a former Bear Stearns and Co. chief economist.
As the World Bank’s largest shareholder, the United States has 16 percent of its voting power and has traditionally chosen the president, although Jim Yong Kim, who stepped down from the post on February 1, faced challengers from Colombia and Nigeria in 2012.
Malpass, the Treasury undersecretary for international affairs, was an economic adviser to Trump's 2016 election campaign.
In position at the Treasury, Malpass has overseen the United States' role in the World Bank and the IMF.
He has criticized the organizations for growing ever larger, more "intrusive," and "entrenched."
In particular, he has been critical of the World Bank’s extension of credit to China.
Malpass says the world's second-largest economy is too wealthy for such aid while it was loading up some countries with unsustainable debt from its Belt and Road Initiative program.
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to countries for capital projects.
With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and AP.