Urjit Patel assumed office as the 24th governor of the Reserve Bank of India on Sunday. The country's central bank released a statement on Monday confirming that Patel, who was a deputy governor since January 2013, will serve as the RBI head for the next three years, succeeding Raghuram Rajan.

The RBI said, "Representing India, he [Patel] actively participated in steering the signing into force of the inter-governmental treaty and the Inter-Central Bank Agreement among the BRICS nations, which led to the establishment of the Contingent Reserve Arrangement, a swap line framework among the central banks of these countries."

Patel has worked with the International Monetary Fund and also been a consultant with the Finance Ministry between 1998 and 2001. He has worked with private companies such as Reliance Industries, among others, as well.

The 53-year-old has also been associated with the Task Force on Direct Taxes, the High-Level Expert Group for Reviewing the Civil and Defence Services Pension System, the Prime Minister's Task Force on Infrastructure, the Group of Ministers on Telecom Matters, the Committee on Civil Aviation Reforms, and the Ministry of Power's Expert Group on State Electricity Boards.

Patel did his PhD in economics from Yale University, after an MPhil from the University of Oxford and a BSc from the University of London.