Nordea Bank’s Topi Manner is to succeed Pekka Vauramo as chief executive of state-controlled Finnair. Vauramo, who is credited with returning the airline to profit growth will leave in November to join engineering firm Metso.
Manner has been with Nordea Bank, the Nordic region’s largest bank, for over 20 years, holding a variety of positions. Talking about the appointment, Finnair Chairman Jouko Karvinen told a news conference: “Topi Manner has extensive experience in both private and corporate customer business, and he has played a strong role in the digital transformation and customer service development of his bank.”
The announcement comes on the back of July’s news that the airline, which has struggled to compete with low-cost carriers, could see this year’s profits negatively impacted by a substantial rise in fuel prices. One of Vauramo’s greatest challenges had been to effectively restructure operations owing to the strength of trade unions, while relations with the state, which holds a controlling 55.8% stake in Finnair, have been strained for some time.
