Mauricio Villamizar

MAURICIO has been a Board Member of the Colombian Central Bank (Banco de la República) since February 2021. Born in Cali (Colombia), he holds a M.A. and B.A. in Economics from Universidad de los Andes and a Ph.D. and M.A. in Economics from Georgetown University. Having joined the Central Bank in 2014 as a research economist, he went on to work as Chief Officer for Economic Studies in 2018.

Education

• Ph.D. in Economics, Georgetown University, Washington. D.C., United States fo America, 2014.
• M.A. in Economics, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C., United States fo America, 2010.
• M.A. in Economics, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá - Colombia, 2007.
• B.A. in Economics, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá - Colombia, 2006.

Professional Experience

• Board Member of Banco de la República, February 2021 to date.
• Chief Officer for Economic Studies at Banco de la República, 2018 - February 2021.
• Secondment at the Bank for International Settlements, 2017.
• Research Economist at Banco de la República, 2014 - 2018.
• Economic Specialist at USAID / Colombia, 2007 - 2009.
• Economic Analyst at the Colombian Congress (Legislative Team, UTL), 2006.
• Economic Analyst at Banco de la República, 2005-2006.

Research Fields

Monetary Policy, Econometrics, International Finance and Empirical Macroeconomics.

Teaching

• Macro and International Finance. Universidad de los Andes, Colombia, 2014 - 2024.
• Game Theory (Micro II). Universidad del Rosario, Colombia, 2016.
• Macroeconomics. >Universidad del Rosario, Colombia, 2015.
• International Finance. Georgetown University, United States of America, 2013.
• Principles of Macroeconomics. Universidad de los Andes, Colombia, 2011 and 2013.

Selected Publications

• "Drug money and bank lending: the unintended consequences of anti-money laundering policies", with Pablo Slutzky, Tomas Williams. The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, 2026.
• "Examining Macroprudential Policy Through a Microprudential Lens", with Cabrera, W., and Gamba, S., Gómez, C. IMF Economic Review, 2025.
• "Auction-based tests of inventory control and private information in a centralized interdealer FX market", with Bonaldi, Pietro. Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, volume 74(C), 2025.
• "Foreign exchange intervention: A comparative analysis of announcements versus trades", with Pinzón-Puerto, Freddy.  European Economic Review, Elsevier, volume 178(C), 2025.
• "Can Central Bank Credibility Improve Monetary Policy? A Meta‐Analysis", with Valentina Cepeda and Bibiana Taboada.  International Finance, Wiley Blackwell, voume 28(2), pages 115-140, July, 2025.
• "Foreign exchange intervention: A comparative analysis of announcements versus trades", with Pinzón-Puerto, Freddy. European Economic Review, Elsevier, volume 178(C), 2025.
• Book “Mitos y realidades de la política monetaria”, with Bibiana Taboada-Arango. Banco de la República - Colombia, 2024. 
• "The Effects of Monetary Policy on Capital Flows: An Emerging Market Survey", with Arango-Lozano, Lucía; Castelblanco, Geraldine; Fajardo-Baquero, Nicolás and Ruiz-Sánchez, María A.  Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, volume 62(C), 2024.
• “Government Borrowing and Crowding Out” with Yasin Kursat Onder, Sara Restrepo and Alejandra Ruiz, 2023. American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, volume 16(1), pages 286-321.
• “A comprehensive history of regression discontinuity designs: An empirical survey of the last 60 years” with Freddy Pinzón and Alejandra Ruiz. Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, volume 36(4), pages 1130-1178.
• “Effectiveness of FX intervention and the flimsiness of exchange rate expectations” with Hernando Vargas. Journal of Financial Stability, article in press, ISSN 1572-3089, 2021.
• “More than words: Foreign exchange intervention under imperfect credibility,” with José Gómez and Julia Parra. Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, volume 73(4), pages 499-507, 2021.
• “Effects of interest rate caps on credit access,” with Juan Cubillos, Juliana Gamboa, Luis Melo, Sara Restrep and María José Roa. Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, Vol. 60(2), pages 117-139, 2021.
• “Exchange Rate Effects of financial Regulations” with David Pérez. Journal of International Money and Finance, volume 96 (C), pages 228-245, 2019.
• “Effects of FX Intervention in Colombia: Evidence from a Rule-Based Policy in Colombia” with Guido Kuersteiner and David Phillips. Journal of International Economics, volume 113, pages 118-138, 2018.
• “The Effects of Monetary and Exchange Rate Policy Shocks: Evidence from an Emerging Market Economy,” with Kursat Onder. International Journal of Central Banking, volume 14(1), pages 159-199, 2018.
• “When Multiple Objectives Meet Multiple Instruments: Identifying Simultaneous Monetary Shocks” with Daniel Ordóñez and Juan Hernández. International Review of Economics & Finance, volume 21(2), pages 195-213, 2018.
• “A Theoretical Approach to Sterilized Foreign Exchange Intervention,” with David Pérez. Journal of Economic Surveys, volume (31)1, pages 343-365, 2017.

Selected Working Papers

• “Debt Moratorium: Theory and Evidence", with Yasin Kursat Onder and José Villegas. Borradores de Economía, number 1253, Banco de la República - Colombia.
• “Do Actions Speak Louder than Words? A Foreign Exchange Intervention Analysis" with Freddy Pinzón. Borradores de Economía, number 1223, Banco de la República - Colombia.
• “The Leading Role of Bank Supply Shocks", with Leonardo Bonilla. Borradores de Economía, number 1205, Banco de la República - Colombia.
• “Examining Macroprudential Policy through a Microprudential Lens", with Wilmar Cabrera, Santiago Gamba, and Camilo Gómez. Borradores de Economía, number 1212, Banco de la República - Colombia.
• “FX intervention and domestic credit: Evidence from high-frequency micro data” with Boris Hofmann and Hyun Song Shin. BIS Working Papers, number 774, Bank for International Settlements (BIS).

Fellowships, Grants and Awards

• Vernon E. Jordan Doctoral Fellowship Award for Best Research, 2012-2013.
• Georgetown University Scholarship, 2009-2014.
• Fulbright Scholarship, 2008-2014.
• Institute of International Education-BARSA Award, 2009-2011.
• Colfuturo Graduate Scholarship, 2009-2011.

Interviews, Presentations, and Opinion Pieces

• Surprise Colombian Rate Decision Helps Avoid Volatility, Central Banker Says, by Matthew Bristow. Bloomberg, May 1, 2026.
• Presentation of the book “Mitos y realidades de la política monetaria” at FILBo 2026, with Bibiana Taboada and moderated by Economía para la Pipol. Banco de la República and Economía para la Pipol, April 23, 2026.
• "Desmitificando mandamientos populistas: diez mitos sobre inflación, tasas de interés y el Banco de la República", opinion piece by Mauricio Villamizar in El Tiempo, April 17, 2026.
• "Exclusiva: Banquero central advierte que control de precios podría ser nefasto y pide señal fuerte de Junta", by Daniel Guerrero. Bloomberg Línea, January 15, 2026.
• "No se puede gastar más por mucho tiempo: o se quiebran los hogares o se quiebra el Gobierno" by Mauricio Galindo. El Tiempo, December 8, 2025.
• "Deterioro ‘continuo y acelerado’ del gasto lo paga la gente con inflación, advierten desde Banco de la República: entrevista a Mauricio Villamizar" by  Mauricio Galindo. El Tiempo, September 3, 2025.
• "MNI EM INTERVIEW: Gradual Cuts Allow Lower Rates - BanRep Villamizar ", by Larissa Garcia - https://marketnews.com/, October 11, 2024.
• "¿Por qué debería importarle que el Banco de la República baje la tasa de interés?" by Isabel Tamayo in La Palabra - Universidad del Valle, Available in Spanish, March 14, 2023.
• "Nuestras finanzas públicas no pueden depender de choques externos" by Bloomberg. Portafolio. Available in Spanish. March 10, 2021.
• "New Central Banker Weighs Risks of Extra Stimulus for Colombia" by Matthew Bristow. Bloomberg. March 5, 2021.
• “Yo no hago parte de ningún partido político”: Mauricio Villamizar´ by Luis Carlos Vélez. Semana. Available in Spanish. February 12, 2021.

Shorts, clips and videos 

• Posted at X: En este video, Mauricio Villamizar, codirector del Banco de la República, nos habla sobre el dilema entre priorizar un crecimiento económico inmediato o controlar la inflación para el futuro. Aprenda cómo estas decisiones impactan la estabilidad económica". By @BancoRepublica, May 10, 2026.
• Posted at X: ¿Cómo equilibra el banco de la república las consideraciones de inflación y crecimiento económico? Mauricio Villamizar, codirector del Banco de la República, nos explica la importancia de la estabilidad de precios en el crecimiento económico y el papel de la tasa de sacrificio. By @BancoRepublica, May 3, 2026.
• Post en X: Ya sabemos que los bancos centrales compran y venden dólares en el mercado cambiario, pero… ¿Cuándo se justifica? ¿Hay costos asociados? En este video nos explican. By @BancoRepublica, January 21, 2025.
• Post en X: Continuamos con la publicación de preguntas sobre el libro “Mitos y Realidades de la Política Monetaria” de los codirectores @mauriciovillam y @BibianaTaboada ¿Sabía que los bancos centrales compran y venden dólares en el mercado cambiario? ¿Cuáles son las razones para hacerlo? Descubra cómo y por qué interviene el Banco de la República. By @BancoRepublica, January 15, 2025.
• Post en X: ¡Ya salió el segundo video! ¿Sabes qué pasos sigue un país que decide dolarizar su economía? ¿Te has preguntado cuáles son los riegos de esta estrategia? By @economia_red, December 11, 2024.
• Post en X: Qué es la dolarización y por qué algunos países deciden dolarizar? Aquí le contamos. A partir de hoy, publicaremos algunos videos de preguntas clave abordadas en el nuevo libro "Mitos y Realidades de la Política Monetaria”, escrito por los codirectores @mauriciovillam y @BibianaTaboada. By @BancoRepublica, December 6, 2024.

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