World Bank President Jim Yong Kim resigns 3 years before term ends

World Bank Group president Jim Yong Kim is leaving his post long before his term expires.

On Monday, Kim told World Bank Group employees he'd made the "unexpected" choice to join the private sector. His resignation will take effect Feb. 1, with World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva taking over as interim president, per the Financial Times.

Kim has headed the international lender for developing countries since former President Barack Obama appointed him in 2012. He was reappointed by the bank's board for a second five-year term in 2017. Since President Trump's election, the lender has faced pressure "to justify its lending practices, including loans to China," Bloomberg says. It secured a $13 billion increase in lending capital last April after the U.S. dropped its opposition to the move.

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Under Kim, the World Bank aimed to "end extreme poverty by 2030" and "boost shared prosperity," he wrote in his resignation letter. He'll now join a firm focused on "building infrastructure in developing countries." Trump will likely appoint Kim's successor, as the World Bank's leader is usually American, Bloomberg notes. Read Kim's resignation statement below. Kathryn Krawczyk