European Merchant Bank appoints new chief risk officer

European Merchant Bank, which holds a specialised banking license and has been operating in Lithuania since late 2019, has appointed a new chief risk officer.

Eugenijus Preikša (pictured) has been appointed to the position and will contribute to the advancement of the EMBank risk management strategy.

Preikša has more than 35 years of experience in the finance and banking sector. Of these, he worked at Swedbank for 16 years. Previously, he spent five years working at Hansabank, which Swedbank purchased in 2005. He also represented the Association of Lithuanian Banks at the European Banking Federation between 2015 and 2021.

For most of his career at Swedbank, Preikša held the positions of vice-chairman of the board, deputy head of administration, and head of risk at Swedbank in Lithuania, and from 2018, he was appointed the head of the risk for the Baltic States at Swedbank AB. As the head of risk, Preikša was tasked with creating a modern risk management system, which would comply with European Central Bank (ECB) and European Banking Authority (EBA) requirements across the Baltic States.

“I saw that this bank is at the onset of growth in Lithuania, that it wants to focus on a broader application of new financial technologies and, most importantly, that it has goals and motivation to expand not only here in Lithuania but also in other EU countries. This was the exact motivation to join and help through my knowledge and work to achieve the highest results,” he said.

According to the CEO of the European Merchant Bank, Sarp Demiray, the arrival of Preikša will allow EMBank to strengthen its team of high-level executives. It is expected that Preikša’s experience will help the bank grow in terms of its risk management and other domains.

“Every day, we strive to improve the processes ongoing in our bank, and the risk division is a crucial element in seeking to ensure quality services for our clients. I do not doubt that his experience in the banking sector will vastly contribute to achieving the goals we have set out,” Sarp Demiray said.

According to Ekmel Cilingir, chairman of the supervisory board of EMBank, the fact that such an experienced executive joined the bank’s team is proof that the bank is now further ready for the growth that is envisioned.

He said: “After the establishment of the bank in 2019, our team has expectedly focused on the products and service quality to reach our vision as to provide custom banking solutions to fintech companies and especially local SMEs. The joining of Mr. Preiksa is a turning point for us, as now we are getting ready to take on higher challenges in terms of growth and becoming a crucial bank in the market.”

European Merchant Bank was issued a specialised banking license by the European Central Bank (ECB) in December 2018. As of June 2021, European Merchant Bank assets in Lithuania reached 83.8 million euros, with a loan portfolio of 20 million euros.

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