George David Woods (July 27, 1901 – August 20, 1982) was a

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

banker. He served as

President of the World Bank President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese fu ...

from January 1963 until March 1968.

Biography

George Woods was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1901. After completing high school he was employed as an office boy at Harris, Forbes & Co., an underwriting firm. At the company's urging, he attended night school in banking, and later became a buyer in the underwriting department. By the age of 26 he had been promoted to a vice president position. In 1930 the firm was acquired by Chase Bank, and Woods was made vice president of the new firm; he later became vice president and member of the board of

First Boston Corporation : ''For the company after its acquisition by Credit Suisse, see Credit Suisse First Boston (known as CSFB and CS First Boston)'' The First Boston Corporation was a New York-based bulge bracket investment bank, founded in 1932 and acquired by Cr ...

, a newly formed securities company. First Boston became one of the largest investment banking firms in the United States, and Woods played a major role in it. In 1947 he became one of two executive vice presidents, then in 1948 became chairman of the executive committee. Then, in 1951 Woods became chairman of the board.

World Bank Service

Woods tenure at the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

accompanied its transformation into a more global institution, One emphasis he had was to work to correct the disparity between rich and poor, and North and South. Under Woods, there was an increasing focus on economic analysis in determining root causes for constrained growth in developing nations, and less focus on the basis determination of country creditworthiness. Under his tenure, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) was established, which provided assurance for nervous private investors. Woods was also leader of the World Bank during the effort to assist India, which resulted in the devaluation of the rupee in 1966.

Honour

Foreign honour

* : Honorary Grand Commander of the

Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia The Most Esteemed Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Setia Mahkota Malaysia) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country and awarded by the sovereign. The order was instituted ...

(1973)

References

Biography of George David Woods (website)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woods, George David 1901 births 1982 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American bankers Presidents of the World Bank Group Honorary Grand Commanders of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia