Wim Duisenberg, the former European Central Bank chief who helped create the euro currency, was found dead yesterday in his swimming pool in Carpentras, in southeastern France. He was 70. No cause was given.

Duisenberg was the first head of the European Central Bank, serving from 1998 to 2003. Having shepherded the euro through its 1999 introduction, he became known as the father of the 12-nation European common currency.

Tall and stoop-shouldered, with a big mane of white hair, Duisenberg sometimes came across as more of a professor than a heavyweight policy-maker.

A chain-smoking golf lover, Duisenberg kept a decidedly low profile as ECB chief but was a major figurehead bearing overall responsibility for price stability in the euro zone of more than 300 million people.

During his tenure as ECB chief, Duisenberg was known for his cautious monetary policy and was eager to defend the euro through its early years.

Perhaps Duisenberg’s most difficult moment came in October 2000 when, in an interview with the Times of London, he suggested that the ECB would not intervene to support the declining euro before the upcoming U.S. presidential election.

Speculators promptly pounded the euro to new lows, and Duisenberg’s lack of caution was widely criticized.

One of his biggest achievements was the smooth introduction of euro notes and coins in early 2002. Twelve national currencies were removed from circulation by banks and shops and replaced with the new money in a huge logistical effort that defied predictions of long lines and consumer confusion.