(Bloomberg) --

Former Brazilian central bank President Carlos Langoni, who was praised for bringing greater stability to Latin America’s largest economy, has died of complications from coronavirus, local media reported.

Langoni died Sunday at a Rio de Janeiro hospital, where he’d been treated since December. He was 76.

The University of Chicago-trained economist headed Brazil’s central bank from 1980 to 1983 and most recently served as director at the Fundacao Getulio Vargas, a university in Rio.

Langoni was also known for his closeness to current Economy Minister Paulo Guedes. In a 2019 interview with Bloomberg News regarding the local economic outlook, Langoni described himself as an optimist.

“He helped to build the country’s economic stability, and protected the institutional role that central banks have in all economies,” Brazil’s central bank board said in a statement on Sunday. “Langoni’s knowledge will certainly be missed in economic debate.”

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