At today's meeting, the Board of Directors of the Banque Cantonale de Genève (BCGE) decided to appoint Nicolas Krügel as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the BCGE Group. Nicolas Krügel will be succeeding Blaise Goetschin, who has been in office since 1 October 2000. The appointment will take place on 6 March 2024, the day after the 2023 results are to be announced and following a two-month preparation period. This appointment brings an end to the search for an individual with the high level of qualifications, experience and interpersonal skills needed to lead the institution. The Board of Directors warmly thanks Blaise Goetschin for his significant contribution in fostering the Bank's renewed growth.

Nicolas Krügel named CEO of the BCGE Group

The BCGE Board of Directors has decided to appoint Nicolas Krügel as CEO of the BCGE Group, effective 6 March 2024. Manuel Leuthold, Chairman of the Board of Directors, commented: “The Board of Directors has succeeded in its mission by finding a high-calibre individual with both national and international stature and with extensive experience in finance and the banking sector. Nicolas Krügel, renowned for his entrepreneurial skills, will take over the reins of a solid banking group with the necessary foundations to continue in the development of a diversified and universal banking strategy. He will be bringing his vision and fresh ideas to the Group. The Board of Directors looks forward to working with Nicolas Krügel and wishes him every success in his future responsibilities.”

Beginning in 2018, Nicolas Krügel spent the first 27 years of his career with the Credit Suisse Group, where he was Chief Credit Officer for the Swiss Division. His extensive exposure to all the segments of a universal bank in French-speaking Switzerland, Zurich, California and New York has enabled him to acquire a highly specialised background, develop widely recognised leadership skills and become trilingual in a demanding Swiss and international professional environment. Since 2020, Nicolas Krügel has been a director and Chairman of the Risk Committee of BANK-now, a subsidiary of the Credit Suisse Group specialising in consumer finance. He has chaired the Board ad interim since July 2023. He will relinquish these various mandates in the autumn in order to devote himself exclusively to the BCGE Group.

Nicolas Krügel holds a Master of Science from the University of Neuchâtel and completed an Executive Program at Stanford University. He is married with two children. Currently based in the canton of Neuchâtel, he will be re-locating to Geneva.

Commenting on his appointment, Nicolas Krügel thanked the Board of Directors for its confidence in him. “I am stepping into this new position with great humility and respect. My predecessor built up a strong institution, one that is very solid financially, not only with local influence in the canton but beyond. Together with the Board, the Executive Board and all our employees, I look forward to joining in the Bank's work for the benefit of a diverse, sustainable, dynamic and ambitious Geneva economy.”

BCGE: a banking group that has become a leader in Switzerland

Blaise Goetschin, current CEO of BCGE, says: “Since 2000, the BCGE Group has grown considerably. Active in 14 lines of business, BCGE has seen its equity exceed CHF 2 billion and the number of its clients approach 250,000. With 21 branches in the canton and a national and international presence, the Bank is now a leading company that can rely on the skills of its almost 900 employees. I look forward to supporting Nicolas Krügel in the preparation and handover process over the coming months.”