OTTAWA – Mark Carney is a known commodity in Liberal circles. Party organizers have tried to convince the former central banker to run under the big red banner for the past decade.
The international finance globetrotter finally put an end to years of breathless speculation by launching his campaign to replace Justin Trudeau at the helm of the Liberal party in Edmonton, Alta. on Jan. 16. Here’s a quick look at his background.
Born: March 16, 1965, in Fort Smith, N.W.T.
Early Years: Carney was raised Catholic in Alberta, attending St. Rose Catholic junior high school and St. Francis Xavier high school in Edmonton. He worked as a paper boy for the Edmonton Journal when he lived in the city’s west end.
He studied economics abroad, obtaining a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, as well as a master’s and a doctorate from Oxford. At Harvard, he played as a backup goalie for the hockey team.
Career history: Carney spent 13 years at the global investment banking firm Goldman Sachs in its London, New York, Tokyo and Toronto offices.
He held senior positions at the Bank of Canada and in the Finance department in Ottawa until he was appointed governor of the Bank of Canada in 2008.
After the Liberals parted ways with Michael Ignatieff after the party floundered in the 2011 federal election, Carney’s name was floated in headlines and news articles as a potential successor. But he did not publicly express interest in running. The late Conservative finance minister Jim Flaherty announced in fall 2012 that Carney would become the next governor of the Bank of England in 2013. His term ended in March 2020. He is a longtime supporter of carbon pricing to combat climate change.
Carney has served as an advisory board chair to the progressive liberal think-tank Canada 2020 and was named the United Nations’ Special Envoy on Climate Change in 2019. Since 2020, he’s been chair of investment firm Brookfield Asset Management. He is also an external member of the board of the payment-processing financial tech company Stripe and he sat on the foundation board of the World Economic Forum.
When Carney launched his campaign on Jan. 16, he said he has since resigned from these roles so he will not be in a conflict of interest as he seeks office.
Family: He is married to Diana Fox Carney, a climate and finance policy consultant at the Eurasia Group, where she works closely with Gerald Butts, a former top aide to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The Carneys have four children — all girls. He is the godfather to Chrystia Freeland’s son.
Quote: “I know I’m not the usual suspect when it comes to politics, but this is no time for politics as usual.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 16, 2025.
