Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) has revealed Carine Smith Ihenacho’s role as chief governance and compliance officer will disappear when she leaves at the end of this year, with her responsibilities being divided between three existing departments.
However, the manager of the NOK22trn (€2trn) Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG) said its ambitions in the area of corporate governance and responsible investment remained unchanged.
NBIM said on Thursday it had decided to integrate its active ownership function with its active management teams, as part of a wider reorganisation of its governance and compliance operations.
The impending departure of Smith Ihenacho, after nine years, was announced a month ago.
An NBIM spokeswoman told IPE that Smith Ihenacho’s areas of responsibility would not be taken over by one person. “They will be placed under three different chiefs”, she said.
Of the areas led by Smith Ihenacho, active ownership – which includes NBIM’s teams working on voting and sustainability, and is currently led by global head Caroline Eriksen – will be placed in active strategies under co-chief active strategies Daniel Balthasar, NBIM announced.
Nicolai Tangen, NBIM’s chief executive officer, said: “Bringing active ownership together with active management gives us shorter decision-making lines and a more holistic follow-up of the companies we own.”
It strengthened NBIM’s ability to safeguard the fund’s long-term financial interests and to further build our engagement and voting, he said.
NBIM also said: “The fund’s strategic ambition in this area remains unchanged: to contribute to its investment goal through world-leading responsible investment, and to further strengthen its company engagements and voting.”
Meanwhile, policy engagement – such as the fund’s views and engagement with standard setters – is to become part of communications and external relations under chief communications and external relations officer Marthe Skaar, NBIM said.
The fund’s compliance department and its operational risk and control department will be integrated into investment risk, under chief risk officer Patrick du Plessis, and legal and tax will move to the staff area, led by deputy CEO and chief of staff Trond Grande, said NBIM, adding that the changes would take effect on 1 January 2027.
A spokeswoman for NBIM confirmed that after Smith Ihenacho’s departure, the central bank subsidiary’s leadership group would be reduced to nine people from 10.
