Mr Carstens was the General Manager of the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) from 1 December 2017 to 30 June 2025. Prior to that, he served as Governor of the Bank of Mexico from 2010 to 2017. During his time as Governor, he was a Member of the BIS Board from 2011 to 2017 and chaired the Global Economy Meeting and the Economic Consultative Committee from 2013 to 2017. He also chaired the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC), the policy advisory committee of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), from 2015 to 2017.

Earlier in his career, he served as Mexico's Finance Minister from 2006 to 2009, and as Deputy Managing Director at the IMF from 2003 to 2006. From 2000 to 2003, he was Mexico's Deputy Finance Minister, and from 1999 to 2000, he held the position of Executive Director at the IMF. Mr Carstens began his career in 1980 at the Bank of Mexico. He has been a Member of the Financial Stability Board since 2010 and is also a Member of the Group of Thirty.