ABN AMRO appointed Marguerite Bérard as chief executive officer on 23 April 2025, when she was introduced at the Dutch bank's annual general meeting. She succeeded Robert Swaak, who stepped down after five years in the role.
Supervisory Board Chair Tom de Swaan said: "We are very pleased to have Marguerite as a member of the Executive Board and CEO." Bérard said: "I am honoured to be entrusted with the responsibility of leading the bank in the years to come."
FROM BNP PARIBAS TO AMSTERDAM
ABN AMRO announced on 10 January 2025 that it intended to appoint Bérard, subject to approval from the regulator. She was previously head of BNP Paribas French Commercial and Personal Banking and a member of BNP Paribas' Executive Committee between January 2019 and March 2024. From 2016 to 2018 she sat on the Management Board of BPCE Group, where she was responsible for finance, strategy, legal affairs and compliance. Before moving into banking in 2012 she worked in government, including as an adviser to former French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Bérard is a graduate of the Ecole Nationale d'Administration and Sciences Po in Paris and holds a master's degree from Princeton University. She is the first woman to lead one of the three largest banks in the Netherlands.
SUCCESSION AND AGM DECISIONS
Swaak, who became CEO in April 2020 and was reappointed in April 2024, announced on 1 August 2024 that he would step down in the first half of 2025, before completing his term. The bank then began the search for a successor.
At the same meeting, shareholders adopted the 2024 financial statements, approved the dividend proposal and reappointed Mariken Tannemaat to the Supervisory Board. ABN AMRO also said it would hold a Capital Markets Day in November 2025 to present its strategy following a comprehensive review of its activities.
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