LONDON (AP) — The British government has started the process to appoint the successor to Mark Carney as governor of the Bank of England.

Carney, who in July 2013 became the first foreigner to head the Bank of England, has said he is standing down from his role at the end of January 2020.

In a statement Wednesday, Treasury chief Philip Hammond praised Carney for his time at the helm, a challenging period that saw Britain vote to leave the European Union.

Hammond said Carney's "steady hand has helped steer the U.K. economy through a challenging period and we are now seeing stable, low inflation and the fastest wage growth in over a decade."

The Treasury is using a specialist executive search agency and said Carney's replacement should be announced in the autumn.