13.05.2024
Erste Group announces Management Board changes in advance of CEO handover
- Incoming CEO Peter Bosek will also serve as Chief Retail Officer
- Maurizio Poletto appointed Chief Operating Officer alongside his Chief Platform Officer role
- Updated Management Board to consist of five members
The Supervisory Board of Erste Group Bank AG has appointed Maurizio Poletto as the banking group’s new Chief Operating Officer. Poletto, who serves on Erste Group’s management board as Chief Platform Officer, will additionally take on the COO role as of 1 July 2024. The Supervisory Board moreover confirmed that incoming CEO Peter Bosek will also hold the role of Chief Retail Officer.
”With incoming CEO Peter Bosek set to also serve as Chief Retail Officer and Maurizio Poletto taking on the COO role in addition to being Chief Platform Officer, I am confident that Erste Group’s management board will distinguish itself as exceptionally forward-thinking, well-coordinated, and effective. Bringing together the functions held by the COO and CPO in one board member will make it possible to better implement the strategic priorities of the new CEO by ensuring an even closer link up between business and IT. That tight connection will in turn benefit the bank and its customers through shorter decision-making processes, greater agility, and more extensive and quicker digitalization,” said Supervisory Board chairman Friedrich Rödler. “I would like to take this opportunity to also thank David O’Mahony, who as COO over the past five years helped Erste Group to make significant strides in its operational excellence, with advances in the important areas of cloud computing and IT security worth particular mention.”
Poletto experienced at bridging IT and business to advance banking transformation
The Supervisory Board of Erste Group Bank AG has appointed Maurizio Poletto as the banking group’s new Chief Operating Officer. Poletto, who serves on Erste Group’s management board as Chief Platform Officer, will additionally take on the COO role as of 1 July 2024. The Supervisory Board moreover confirmed that incoming CEO Peter Bosek will also hold the role of Chief Retail Officer.
”With incoming CEO Peter Bosek set to also serve as Chief Retail Officer and Maurizio Poletto taking on the COO role in addition to being Chief Platform Officer, I am confident that Erste Group’s management board will distinguish itself as exceptionally forward-thinking, well-coordinated, and effective. Bringing together the functions held by the COO and CPO in one board member will make it possible to better implement the strategic priorities of the new CEO by ensuring an even closer link up between business and IT. That tight connection will in turn benefit the bank and its customers through shorter decision-making processes, greater agility, and more extensive and quicker digitalization,” said Supervisory Board chairman Friedrich Rödler. “I would like to take this opportunity to also thank David O’Mahony, who as COO over the past five years helped Erste Group to make significant strides in its operational excellence, with advances in the important areas of cloud computing and IT security worth particular mention.”
Poletto experienced at bridging IT and business to advance banking transformation
Maurizio Poletto has been a member of Erste Group’s executive board since 2021, when he was named the banking group’s first-ever Chief Platform Officer (CPO). In his new board role as COO, Poletto assumes responsibilities for Group-level IT functions, architecture and banking services while also retaining those associated with his position as CPO. In his role as COO, Poletto succeeds David O’Mahony, who will continue to advise the management board until the end of this year, also to ensure a smooth transition in the operations sphere.
A banking and fintech sector veteran with well over a decade of experience in senior management roles, Maurizio Poletto served as the management director of Erste Group’s digital innovation hub George Labs before joining the banking group’s management board. Poletto is the founder of Erste Group’s inhouse fintech and has been a driving force behind the development of George, which has over 10 million users in Austria and across Central and Eastern Europe, making it the leading banking platform in the region in which Erste Group is present. In addition, the Italian-born executive has served as a supervisory board member ofErste Digital, Erste Group’s IT solutions provider, as well as of Erste Group’s banking subsidiaries in Czechia (Česká spořitelna) and Hungary (Erste Bank Hungary).
“In my newly expanded role as COO, I am glad to bring my experience in bridging the gap between IT and business functions into a unified strategy. These synergies will foster our mission to deliver top-tier financial services in the most straightforward and impactful way,” said Maurizio Poletto, Chief Platform Officer and designated COO at Erste Group.
Management Board composition set for CEO handover
Maurizio Poletto has been a member of Erste Group’s executive board since 2021, when he was named the banking group’s first-ever Chief Platform Officer (CPO). In his new board role as COO, Poletto assumes responsibilities for Group-level IT functions, architecture and banking services while also retaining those associated with his position as CPO. In his role as COO, Poletto succeeds David O’Mahony, who will continue to advise the management board until the end of this year, also to ensure a smooth transition in the operations sphere.
A banking and fintech sector veteran with well over a decade of experience in senior management roles, Maurizio Poletto served as the management director of Erste Group’s digital innovation hub George Labs before joining the banking group’s management board. Poletto is the founder of Erste Group’s inhouse fintech and has been a driving force behind the development of George, which has over 10 million users in Austria and across Central and Eastern Europe, making it the leading banking platform in the region in which Erste Group is present. In addition, the Italian-born executive has served as a supervisory board member ofErste Digital, Erste Group’s IT solutions provider, as well as of Erste Group’s banking subsidiaries in Czechia (Česká spořitelna) and Hungary (Erste Bank Hungary).
“In my newly expanded role as COO, I am glad to bring my experience in bridging the gap between IT and business functions into a unified strategy. These synergies will foster our mission to deliver top-tier financial services in the most straightforward and impactful way,” said Maurizio Poletto, Chief Platform Officer and designated COO at Erste Group.
Management Board composition set for CEO handover
In addition to appointing Maurizio Poletto as COO, the Supervisory Board also confirmed that Peter Bosek will hold the Chief Retail Officer (CRetO) role in addition to serving as Chief Executive Officer on returning to the banking group as of 1 July 2024. Bosek had previously held the CRetO responsibilities at Erste Group (while at the same time also serving as CEO of the group’s Austrian subsidiary, Erste Bank Oesterreich) in 2019 and 2020, when he left Erste Group to take on the CEO position at Estonia-based Luminor Group.
“This updated management board setup allows us to better steer our resources and increase the impact of our activities, all to the benefit of our clients. My board colleagues and I will focus on raising our banking offerings to the next level, also by further developing our platform to offer class-leading end-to-end digital solutions,“ said Peter Bosek, who was selected by Erste Group’s Supervisory Board this past October to succeed current CEO Willi Cernko as of 1 July 2024.
In addition to appointing Maurizio Poletto as COO, the Supervisory Board also confirmed that Peter Bosek will hold the Chief Retail Officer (CRetO) role in addition to serving as Chief Executive Officer on returning to the banking group as of 1 July 2024. Bosek had previously held the CRetO responsibilities at Erste Group (while at the same time also serving as CEO of the group’s Austrian subsidiary, Erste Bank Oesterreich) in 2019 and 2020, when he left Erste Group to take on the CEO position at Estonia-based Luminor Group.
“This updated management board setup allows us to better steer our resources and increase the impact of our activities, all to the benefit of our clients. My board colleagues and I will focus on raising our banking offerings to the next level, also by further developing our platform to offer class-leading end-to-end digital solutions,“ said Peter Bosek, who was selected by Erste Group’s Supervisory Board this past October to succeed current CEO Willi Cernko as of 1 July 2024.
The Management Board of Erste Group will consist of the following five members as of the start of July:
- Peter Bosek, CEO and Chief Retail Officer (CRetO)
- Stefan Dörfler, CFO
- Alexandra Habeler-Drabek, CRO
- Ingo Bleier, Chief Corporates & Markets Officer
- Maurizio Poletto, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Platform Officer (COO & CPO)