Norway central bank deputy chief steps down over security clearance

OSLO: Norwegian deputy central bank governor Jon Nicolaisen will resign with immediate effect after his application for a renewed security clearance was rejected, the central bank said in a statement on Friday.

"The Norwegian Civil Security Clearance Authority informs me that the reason that I will not receive a renewed security clearance is that my wife is a Chinese citizen and resides in China, where I support her financially," Nicolaisen said.

"At the same time, they have determined that there are no circumstances regarding me personally that give rise to doubt about my suitability for obtaining a security clearance, but that this does not carry sufficient weight," he added.

"I have now had to take the consequences of this."

In addition to taking part in setting monetary policy, Nicolaisen had been in charge of overseeing Norway's $1.2 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest.

The Chinese Embassy in Oslo was not aware of the resignation and its reasons, a spokeswoman told Reuters.

Nicolaisen was first appointed deputy governor in 2014 and was re-appointed to a second term in April of this year.

NATO-member Norway has become stricter in recent years with regards to security clearances, making it difficult in many cases to get approval for anyone married to a person from a country with which Norway does not have security cooperation.

"I will miss Jon Nicolaisen in his post as deputy governor, where he performed his duties superbly as a close colleague and competent professional," Central Bank Governor Oeystein Olsen said.