Fatih Karahan

Fatih Karahan (born 1982) is a Turkish economist who has served as Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey since 3 February 2024. Karahan previously worked in private practice as an economist for Amazon, and as an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Early life and education
Fatih Karahan was born in Eskişehir, Turkey in 1982. He entered Istanbul High School in 1993. After completing his secondary education, he studied Mathematics and Industrial Engineering at Boğaziçi University, graduating in 2006.

He went on to study in the United States at University of Pennsylvania, receiving both a Master of Economics and a doctoral degree in economics in 2012 under the supervision of Dirk Kruger and Guido Menzio.

Career
After earning his PhD, Karahan started his professional career as an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. He was the head of the labor and product market department and advisor for money politics until 2022.

In November 2022, he started working at Amazon as a senior economist. While at Amazon, Karahan focused on issues including matters of labor and "inventory efficiency". He served as a part-time lecturer at Columbia University and New York University in 2022. Prior to his appointment to the Central Bank, Karahan was reportedly considered for a deputy ministerial position under Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek.

Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey
On 28 July 2023, Karahan was appointed Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey. After the resignation of the previous governor, Hafize Gaye Erkan on 2 February 2024, Karahan was appointed Governor the next day. Following his appointment, Bloomberg News reported that analysts from JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley anticipate that Karahan will take a more hawkish approach than his predecessor.

Personal life
Karahan is the nephew of career diplomat, the Turkish Ambassador to the United States. Karahan has two children.