Miguel Kast

Miguel Kast Rist (December 18, 1948 - September 18, 1983) was a German-born Chilean economist of the Chicago Boys group. Minister of State of Augusto Pinochet and President of the Central Bank in the same administration

Upon getting his Master in Economics at University of Chicago, Miguel Kast joined Odeplan (1973), the state agency that led many public policy and economic changes after 1973. At Odeplan, Miguel Kast focused most of his energies on creating the "map of extreme poverty", which would become the cornerstone of Chile's social development programs. In 1978 he became the head of Odeplan and used his position to involve young professionals in the struggle against poverty by making them join Odeplan and by sending them to the country's outer regions to get insight into the real problems of Chile.

In 1980 Miguel Kast became Labor Minister under the Military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet and in April 1982 he became President of the Central Bank of Chile.

This was a complicated moment in Chile's economy; the exchange rate was fixed at 39 pesos per dollar and Chile's big economic groups had liabilities with their own banks. As a Central Banker he worked to reduce the level of related loans (loans made to the owners of the banks). He also created a mechanism called the "Portfolio Sale" through which the Central Bank could buy high risk credits to commercial banks. By keeping a fixed exchange rate of 39 pesos per dollar, Miguel Kast hoped to protect local companies that had liabilities in dollars. However the central authority saw it otherwise and on June 13, 1982 decided to devalue the peso. This brought a sharp loss of international reserves and Miguel Kast decided in August 1982 to completely free exchange rate thus further devaluing the peso and bringing a new intervention from the central authority. Under this new threat of instability, Miguel Kast resigned from the Central Bank, effective on 2 September.

Towards the end of 1982 Kast wanted to leave the life of government and dedicate himself to the private business world and his professorships at the Catholic University, but it was at this same time that he began to feel unwell and to present signs of physical weakness and a pale appearance. In January 1983 he was diagnosed with bone cancer; it was at that very moment that Kast took refuge in his family and friends, but mainly in his Catholic faith. It was a fulminant cancer that took his life on September 18, 1983.

Two of his relatives are involved in politics too: his younger brother José Antonio, and one of his children, Felipe.

Official webpage of Fundacion Miguel Kast

• Miguel Kast: Pasíon de Vivir, by Joaquín Lavín, Santiago, Chile, ISBN 956-7252-05-X