David Robert Malpass

David Malpass graduated from Colorado College in 1976 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in physics. He went on to earn a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Denver in 1978.

He became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and later undertook advanced graduate coursework in international economics at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. He has also studied Spanish, Russian, and French.

David Malpass's career began in Portland, Oregon, where he worked as a contract administrator, a computer systems consultant for Arthur Andersen, and a financial controller from 1976 to 1981.

From 1984 to 1993, Malpass served in the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. He held roles including Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Developing Nations and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Latin American Economic Affairs, working on the 1986 tax cut, NAFTA, and the Latin American debt crisis. He also served as the Republican staff director of the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress.

In 1993, Malpass joined Wall Street firm Bear Stearns as chief international economist, later becoming chief economist from 2002 until the firm's collapse in 2008. Following this, he founded Encima Global, a macroeconomic research firm, and became a regular columnist for Forbes and The Wall Street Journal. In 2010, he ran for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate in New York, placing second in the primary.

In 2016, Malpass joined Donald Trump's presidential campaign as a senior economic advisor. In 2017, he was confirmed as the Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs, where he championed U.S. economic leadership, tax reform, and took a critical stance on China's trade practices.

In April 2019, Malpass became the 13th President of the World Bank Group. Under his leadership, the Bank responded rapidly to compounding global crises, increasing support for fragile states and more than doubling its climate finance to developing countries. He stepped down from the role in June 2023. As of 2026, he is a Distinguished Fellow at Purdue University, a Vice Chairman at American Global Strategies, and serves on the board of trustees for UBS Investment Trust.

David Malpass was born in Petoskey, Michigan. He is married to Adele Malpass (née Obermayer), a journalist and former chairwoman of the Manhattan Republican Party. They reside in Washington, D.C., and have four children.

Malpass has traveled extensively, visiting over 75 countries and meeting with world leaders spanning four decades. He is known for his advocacy of sweeping monetary, tax, and budget policy reforms.