ING CEO Ralph Hamers will step down from his position and leave ING as of 30 June. After 29 years at ING he will join UBS on 1 September and will become the new Group Chief Executive Officer of UBS as of 1 November 2020. Ralph, who has been ING’s CEO over the past six years, has transformed ING into a leading digital bank, and has put ING on the path to becoming the go-to financial platform for customers. The UBS Board made the decision to appoint Ralph Hamers as successor of Group CEO Sergio P. Ermotti following a thorough and rigorous selection process, reflecting the firm’s commitment to strong corporate governance.
UBS Group AG Board Chairman Axel A. Weber said, “Ralph is the right CEO to lead our business into its next chapter. A seasoned and well-respected banker with proven expertise in digital transformation, Ralph has an impressive track record leading ING Group for more than six years. As the industry undergoes fundamental change, Ralph is the person to lead UBS’s continued transformation and build upon its successful strategy as the world’s largest and only truly global wealth manager and the leading universal bank in Switzerland, enhanced by its investment bank and asset management.”
“I am very proud of what we have accomplished during the more than six years I had the privilege to lead ING. We have set the strategic course for ING and I’m convinced that the steps we have taken to prepare ING for a digital and mobile future will continue to pay off,” Ralph Hamers said. “This decision has been very hard for me having in mind the many talented and dedicated colleagues and friends I have worked with over the past 29 years. But I am also honoured to get the opportunity to lead an established institution like UBS,” he said.
Ralph joined ING in 1991 and held various management positions across the bank, among which country manager of Romania and Belgium. In 2013 he was appointed to the Executive Board (EB) and Management Board Banking (MBB) and later in the year became its chairman and CEO. Hamers holds a Master of Science in Business Econometrics and Operations Research from Tilburg University in the Netherlands and is Chairman of the European Banking Group, the leading European banking association.
He will remain in his role as CEO until 30 June, running the daily business and working with the EB and MBB to ensure a smooth transition. Further announcements on his succession process will be made if and when appropriate.
Hamers said, “I’m honored by the opportunity to lead this great institution. I have long admired the firm’s transformation under the leadership of Axel and Sergio. The firm has an outstanding global client franchise across its business divisions, all of which are underpinned by the incredibly strong UBS brand. I’m looking forward to working with the senior management team, the Board of Directors and all of UBS’s employees to further strengthen the franchise and serve UBS’s clients to achieve their goals.”
