Babis’s ANO won the most seats in a general election in October and teamed up with the far-right SPD and the right-wing Motorists parties — both eurosceptic — for a 108-vote majority in the 200-seat parliament.

“I have decided to appoint him prime minister on Tuesday, December 9, at 9 am (0800 GMT),” President Petr Pavel said on X.

“This way, I will acknowledge the general election result and the progress in talks on a coalition government,” added Pavel, who had formally tapped Babis to negotiate forming a government in late October.

Before naming him, Pavel had urged Babis to first resolve his conflict of interest as the owner of the sprawling Agrofert food and chemicals holding and a top politician.

Babis, who already served as Czech premier in 2017-2021, said on Thursday he would entrust Agrofert to an independent administrator for now, and that his children will inherit the holding after his death.

Pavel, who has been meeting candidates for ministers since last month, said the explanation was “comprehensible” and that he was in no position to “examine it any further”.

He is due to appoint the entire cabinet later on under the Czech constitution.

Questions remain about the Motorists’ candidate for environment minister, Filip Turek, who is under investigation for domestic violence and rape following a complaint filed by a former girlfriend.

Turek was also probed by the police over allegations of owning Nazi paraphernalia and giving the Nazi salute, but that case has been shelved.

Pavel, who is due to meet Turek on Monday, said earlier he would have a problem naming him as a minister.

Babis’s new coalition replaces a centre-right government in the EU and Nato member of more than 10 million people.

Babis, the seventh wealthiest Czech according to Forbes magazine, is himself facing trial over EU subsidy fraud, but he has denied any wrongdoing, calling the allegations a smear campaign.