“I am only a civil servant.” This was how Ignazio Visco, the newly appointed governor of the Bank of Italy, reacted on October 20 last year to the news that he had just been chosen to succeed Mario Draghi. His discreet, cautious comment – aimed at those looking for a political connotation on his appointment – may have sounded like an understatement, as his nomination put an end to an embarrassing, highly politicised and controversial seven-month long race for the appointment of the head of the