Lauchlin Bernard Currie | |
|---|---|
 Currie in 1939 | |
| Born | October 8, 1902 West Dublin, Nova Scotia, Canada |
| Died | December 23, 1993 (aged 91) Bogotá, Colombia |
| Citizenship |
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| Education | |
| Academic career | |
| Field | |
| Institutions | |
| Doctoral advisor | John H. Williams |
| Other notable students | Paul Sweezy |
| Influences | Allyn Abbott Young |
| Contributions | Banking Act of 1935 |
| Awards | Order of Boyaca |
Lauchlin Bernard Currie (8 October 1902 – 23 December 1993) was a Canadian economist best known for being President Franklin Roosevelt's chief economic advisor during World War II.
After Roosevelt's death, he led the first World Bank survey mission to Colombia and eventually settled there for the rest of his life, becoming an economic advisor to the Colombian government. This permanent relocation was not entirely voluntarily, as the U.S. had refused to renew his passport in 1954. This refusal was ostensibly because he was married to a non-US citizen and residing abroad, but was possibly influenced by the fact Currie had been named as a Soviet spy by two Soviet defectors and in nine partially decrypted VENONA cables sent by Soviet agents. He was never charged with a crime related to espionage or security violations, and debate remains around if he knowingly collaborated with agents of the Soviet Union.