 He obtained a "summa cum laude" degree in economics from the Sapienza University of Rome in 1971 with Federico Caffè as supervisor and continued his studies at the University of Pennsylvania (Economics Department), where he obtained an MA in 1974 and a PhD in 1981.In 1972 Visco began his career at the Bank of Italy and in 1990 he was named head of the research department; from 1997 to 2002 he was chief economist of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and on 9 January 2007 he was named deputy director general of the Bank of Italy (alongside Giovanni Carosio) and a member of its "Direttorio" (Board of Directors).On 24 October 2011 Visco was named to succeed Mario Draghi as governor of the Bank of Italy by Italian President Giorgio Napolitano.