Hellenic Bank CEO Gatzke announces ambitious programme to ‘reshape’ organisation

The new CEO of Hellenic Bank Oliver Gatzke on Monday announced an ambitious programme to ‘reshape’ the organisation.

“I am pleased to announce my official appointment by the European Central Bank as the new CEO of Hellenic Bank as of today (Monday),” Gatzke said in a statement.

“During the last three months at the Bank, I already discussed key priorities with the executive management team and key stakeholders including the Board of Directors, shareholders, clients and our regulator. I also visited several branches and departments and witnessed the progress that has been made, thanks to your contribution and commitment. The successful integration of the Cyprus Cooperative Bank (CCB), the exceptional handling of the pandemic and the support provided to our customers under these circumstances are successes you can be proud of.

I was fortunate to have co-led the first privatisation of a state-owned bank in Germany, Hamburg Commercial Bank AG (formerly HSH Nordbank AG), as CFO and CTO, where my focus was primarily on the successful financial restructuring and transformation of the Bank. The experience and insights gained during this time will be utilised as we reshape Hellenic Bank to enhance shareholder value and deliver a more rewarding customer and employee experience.

Let me briefly summarise our key strategic priorities going forward:

• Improvement of our asset quality through organic and inorganic NPL reduction
• Enhancement of the risk/return profile of our loan book through healthy growth and diversification with a strong focus on ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance)
• Improvement of customer experience through digitisation, the optimisation of our distribution channels and enhanced product scope
• Management of high liquidity from deposits
• Management of high cost base through simplification and active cost management in all areas
• Implementation of a meritocratic HR strategy

As one of the leading banks on the island, there is a lot of unlocked potential which requires a change in our mindset. We need to put our customers at the centre of everything we do. We need to listen, understand, and respond to their needs in a timely, simple and professional manner,” the statement said.

Born n 1968, Gatzke graduated from the University of Hamburg with a degree in Business Administration (with Honors).

Until August 2020, Oliver Gatzke was the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Technology Officer of the European Systemic Bank, Hamburg Commercial Bank AG (formerly HSH Nordbank AG), where he focused on finance, IT / digitisation, business and facility management.

He joined HSH Nordbank AG in 2013 as Chief Financial Officer and then as Chief Financial Officer, co-chair of the first privatization of a state-owned bank in Germany to international financial investors. He had previously worked for Sixteen years at KPMG AG in Germany as a Financial Transaction & Restructuring Partner since 2007 (seconded to KPMG London, UK), as (Senior) Transaction & Restructuring Director since 2001 (with KPMG AG, London, UK) Chicago, USA) and as Assistant Director of Corporate Finance since 1997.