- Born on 1 October 1949 in Luxembourg City (L)

- Nationality: Luxembourgish

- Lawyer at the Bar in Luxembourg and Assistant Professor of Public Law at the University of Paris–Sud 11 (1974–1975)

- Assistant in the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance (1975–1976)

- Assistant at the International Monetary Fund, Washington D.C. (1976–1978)

- Attaché in the Luxembourg Ministry of Finance (1978–1979)

- Financial adviser to the Permanent Representation of Luxembourg to the United Nations, New York (1980–1981)

- Adviser in international financial and monetary relations at the Ministry of Finance (1981)

- Member of the Council of the Luxembourg Monetary Institute (1983–1999)

- Government representative for the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (1985–1989)

- Director of the Treasury (1989–1998)

- President of the Banque Centrale du Luxembourg; Member of the Governing Council and General Council of the European Central Bank (since June 1998)