BlackRock has appointed Jan Bratteberg (pictured) as head of its iShares business in the Nordics. Bratteberg will drive iShares’ distribution efforts across the region, leading the sales team and strategy for the business. He will also contribute to the leadership and strategy of the wider BlackRock business.
BlackRock has been committed to the Nordic Region for more than 15 years. During that time the business has grown significantly, and now has offices in both Stockholm and Copenhagen to service the Nordic client base.
BlackRock´s country manager for the Nordics, Peter Beske Nielsen, says: “The growth potential for ETFs throughout Europe is significant, and the Nordic Region is an important region for iShares. Over the past five years the Nordic iShares business has seen double-digit growth, in line with increased adoption of ETFs in the region. We now have more than USD10bn in assets under management and I expect this growth only to increase in the coming years as investors continue to develop their understanding of ETFs and deploy the funds in new and innovative ways.
“I have worked with Jan for a number of years and I am very confident he has the right capabilities to take the iShares business to the next level. Our clients will benefit greatly from having him in a management role in the region.”
Bratteberg joins iShares from BlackRock’s Scientific Active Equity team where he most recently was co-head of strategy. His career with the firm dates back to 1999, when he joined Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009, serving as Director of Investment Strategy for active stock selection strategies, and as a Portfolio Manager and Investment Analyst for the Active Equities team. Bratteberg earned a BSc degree in finance from Indiana University in 1994.
Bratteberg says: “The growth of ETF as an investment tool has been very impressive, and it’s great to see how retail and institutional investors in the Nordics are evolving their usage. I have no doubt that ETFs have a great future as portfolio building blocks across the region, and I look forward to working closely with investors to showcase what iShares can offer.”
Based in Copenhagen, he will report to Peter Beske Nielsen, BlackRock’s country manager for the Nordics and to Fergus Slinger, Co-Head of iShares Sales EMEA. Bratteberg succeeds Geir Espeskog who moved to Hong Kong as head of iShares distribution in Asia Pacific.
