Former Goldman Sachs executive arrives at Threadneedle Street shortly before 7am, ahead of most photographers
Mark Carney started his first day as governor of the Bank of England with an old London ritual – a trip on the central line.
Carney arrived at Threadneedle Street by tube shortly before 7am, ahead of most camera crews and photographers hoping to catch a glimpse of the governor feted as "the rock star" of central banking.
The former Goldman Sachs executive was wooed by chancellor George Osborne last autumn from the Bank of Canada with a bumper £874,000 pay deal that makes him one of the UK's best-paid public servants.
Expectations are running high that Carney, described by Osborne, as "the outstanding central banker of his generation", will be able to provide the kickstart that propels the economy out of a shaky recovery.
The Canadian central banker is tipped to shake up the 319-year old institution, which has been criticised by politicians for insularity and group-think and not enough vigilance in the runup to the financial crisis.
This change of style also starts – today at least – with a journey on the central line, stuffy on a midsummer morning, although he did at least get a seat.
"It is nice to see someone being suitably parsimonious," said Justin Urquhart Stewart, managing director of Seven Investment Management, who spotted Carney on the tube.
"I've established he definitely wasn't George Clooney," he said. "I wished him good luck." Urquhart Stewart also advised Carney on the best exit to take at Bank underground station.
As well as tube travel, Carney took part in another national pastime on Sunday, when he watched a cricket match at a Bank of England's sports day, affording him a chance to mingle with his new colleagues.
Sir Mervyn King, the bank's retired governor and a keen cricketer, stepped up to the crease, as did Danny Alexander, chief secretary to the Treasury. Carney, who played hockey in his youth, did not try his luck.
On his first day in office, which is also Canada Day, Carney is being bombarded with advice from all sides. The British Chambers of Commerce has called on him to boost the economy by expanding the bank's quantitative easing (QE) programme, while former Conservative chancellor Lord Lamont urged him to shun the printing press, arguing it makes recovery harder in the long run. Carney will face this dilemma at the Bank's monetary policy meeting on Wednesday, where he could find himself on the losing side.
"It is a different world for him. Everything we know about a man like this is that he is very confident about how to deal with people, "said Urquhart Stewart. "There is not a huge amount he can do, but he is a breath of fresh air."
The new governor earns a basic salary of £480,000, pension contributions worth £144,000, and a £250,000 a year housing allowance to help him adjust to London's overheated property market.
Earlier this year his wife, British-born economist Diana Carney, sparked a twitter flurry after she seemed to bemoan the difficulties of finding a home in London.