Ilmarinen has appointed Annika Ekman as its chief investment officer.

Also acting as a member of the management team, Ekman will start her new role from 1 September 2025. She succeeds Mikko Mursula, who was appointed as the group's new CEO and president, after the news that the outgoing CEO, Jouko Pölönen, had been named as the new president and CEO of eQ Plc.

Ekman has worked at Ilmarinen since 2004, most recently as director of equity and chief shareholder officer since 2015. She joins with a strong background in international financial markets, having also previously held roles at Nordea and Goldman Sachs.

Commenting on the appointment, Mursula said: "Annika Ekman’s appointment as chief investment officer is based on her versatile expertise and long experience in various areas of investment operations.

"Ekman has demonstrated strong leadership and expertise in the position of chief investment officer, and we believe she is an excellent choice to take Ilmarinen’s investment operations forward.

"The pension reform that will come into effect next year, which will strengthen the funding of our pension system, also requires careful preparation. The reform allows us to increase equity risk and diversify the portfolio more broadly, which supports long-term returns."

Adding to this, Ekman said: "I am looking forward to developing this responsible task together with Ilmarinen's competent colleagues.

"By investing joint pension assets, we secure the financing of current and future pensions.

"Also, after the upcoming pension reform, joint pension assets must be invested productively, securely and responsibly. We are preparing for the reform with careful risk management and analyzing different market scenarios."

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