All you need to know about Urjit Patel, successor to Raghuram Rajan

Urjit Patel, the current deputy governor of Reserve Bank of India, has been appointed on Saturday as new RBI governor to succeed Raghuram Rajan.

52-year-old Patel has been appointed as new RBI Governor, official sources told PTI.

"Institutional investors both domestic and foreign would welcome the government's appointment of Urjit Patel as successor to Raghuram Rajan," said Ajay Bodke, CEO & Chief Portfolio Manager - PMS at Prabhudas Lilladher.

"It signals a seamless continuity in the policies pursued by the RBI to conduct its monetary policy in an independent manner," Bodke added.

The expert also said that stock market would strongly cheer his appointment.

Below are key things to know about Urjit Patel:

1) As deputy RBI governor, Patel has closely worked with Rajan and possesses sound expertise on macroeconomic management. They both have earlier worked together in the IMF in Washington.

2) On his first day at work, Rajan had appointed a committee under Patel to relook at the monetary policy-making. The committee came up with a report advocating a shift to making RBI an inflation-targeting central bank.

3) Patel's path-breaking report has helped India join the league of developed nations where adoption of flexible inflation targeting has helped anchor inflationary expectations and brought about a structural control over inflation.

4) He will take over the charge from Rajan after he demits the office on September 4. He will be the eighth deputy governor to be made governor at RBI.

5) Patel was first appointed as deputy governor for three years in January 2013 and was given an extension this January.

6) Prior to his appointment as the deputy governor at RBI in 2013, Patel was advisor (energy and infrastructure) with Boston Consulting Group. He has also worked with Reliance Industries in the past.

7) Patel, born on October 28, 1963, received his doctorate in economics from Yale University in 1990) and M Phil from Oxford (1986).

8) He has worked with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) between 1990 and 1995 covering the US, India, Bahamas and Myanmar desks.