The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) has appointed Mariana Kühnel as a member of the executive board, effective from 6 July 2025.

She was nominated by the Federal Minister of Finance following a public tender and appointed by the Federal President for a five-year term.

Kühnel succeeds Eduard Müller, who left the position on 5 July 2025, while Helmut Ettl will continue to hold the second board mandate.

Kühnel completed her studies in business administration at the University of Economics and Business in Vienna.

After another master’s degree in European and International Relations at the College of Europe in Bruges, she took over the political management of the office of MEP Othmar Karas in 2009.

In this role, Kühnel worked on European legislation after the Great Financial Crisis.

Between 2010 and 2018, she held various roles at Erste Group Bank, including head of European affairs, manager for CEO, Andreas Treichl, and later head of group board support and stakeholder management.

Additionally, she served on the bank’s supervisory board from 2022 to 2025.

From 2018 until recently, she held the role of deputy secretary general at the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, where she oversaw areas such as international trade, European policy, innovation, and digitalisation.

In a joint message to the FMA staff, Kühnel and Ettl said: "We look forward to our cooperation in the FMA.  

"Together, we will use all our strength in the coming years to create a strong and stable Austrian financial market that sustainably fulfils its financing function for the Austrian economy and reliably provides financial services for companies and households."

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