PFA has poached Danske Bank’s global head of corporate and institutional banking Anders Damgaard, bringing him on board as the fourth member of group’s management board in charge of investment and risk management.

Damgaard will take up his new role as group director on 1 January next year, said PFA, which is Denmark’s largest commercial pensions provider.

Henrik Heideby, chief executive of the PFA group, said: “In Anders Damgaard, we are getting someone who has broad experience of management, the banking business, investment, financial products, risk, customers, sales and strategic advice.”

With him in its management team, PFA – which manages total assets of DKK417bn (€55.9bn) – will be better equipped for the very stiff competition that exists in the pensions sector, Heideby said.

Damgaard has worked at Danske Bank since 2001, with most of his time there spent within the bank’s Danske Markets business segment.

He has a masters degree in economics from Aarhus University and a PhD from Odense University.

He also lectured in finance at Odense University from 1998 to 2001.

Damgaard described his new role at PFA as “a dream job.”

“It would have taken something very special for me to be ready to switch from the exciting job I have now at Danske Bank – and that is exactly what happened,” he said.

He said he saw the pensions sector as particularly important.

“I have always thought pension companies have a central role in society,” he said. 

“The investment and risk side in particular have been close to my heart, right back from my student days.”

With Damgaard’s appointment, PFA’s group board of directors will expand to four from three people.

He will join current board members Heideby, chief commercial officer Lars Ellehave-Andersen and chief operating officer Jon Johnsen.