The G10 group of central bankers on Sunday named Donald Kohn, vice-chairman of the US Federal Reserve, as chairman of the Committee on the Global Financial System (CGFS).
Kohn replaces former Fed vice-chairman Roger Ferguson and arrives at a crucial time for the powerful group - charged with monitoring financial stability world-wide - as turbulence has roiled markets globally in recent months.
The G10 central bank group, which meets every two months at the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland, has given the global financial system a clean bill of health but pointed to risks from imbalances such as the US trade deficit.
The CGFS, which meets quarterly, has taken on rising importance since its founding in 1971 as financial networks become increasingly interdependent, creating the risk that sparks in one corner of the globe could start a fire in another.
The GCFS's role has evolved from monitoring the monetary policy implications from rapidly growing off-shore deposit and lending markets to financial stability and structural changes in the financial system.
Kohn, a highly regarded policymaker, has served on the central bank's board since August 2002 and spent his entire 36-year career within the Federal Reserve system.
Kohn's appointment as Fed vice-chairman was confirmed by the US Senate on Monday after he was nominated for the post by President George W. Bush in May.
Thirteen central bank systems are members of the GCFS - including the Fed, the European Central bank, the Bank of England and the Swiss National Bank - with another nine countries participating, including India, China and Brazil.
Kohn has been appointed for a three-year term.
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is the bank to the world's central banks and is home to a number of international standard-setters such as the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision.
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