Priya Basu is the Executive Head of the Pandemic Fund hosted by the World Bank. Prior to this, Priya served as head of the COVID-19 task force at the World Bank and led the Bank’s engagement on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response in global fora, including the G20 and G7 - coordinating across finance and health. In previous roles, she managed a $21bn portfolio of Financial Intermediary Funds and trust funds administered by the Bank to support partnerships around global priorities -- such as financial inclusion, global health security, climate change, and debt relief, served as the inaugural head of the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative, and was the Bank’s Lead financial economist for India. Prior to the World Bank, Priya worked in investment banking in London.

She also previously worked as an economist at the International Monetary Fund, Asian Development Bank, and UNCTAD and ILO. With a career in development finance spanning three decades, Priya brings a depth and breadth of experience in country operations across world regions, resource mobilization, and leading and driving large and complex multilateral partnerships and agreements to support global public goods. She is the author of three books, including Creating Resilient Financial Regimes in Asia: Challenges and Policy Options (Oxford University Press), India’s Financial Sector: Recent Reforms, Future Challenges (Macmillan), and Improving Access to Finance in India (World Bank).