At Berner Kantonalbank (BEKB), the Chairwoman of the Board of Directors is passing on the baton. Antoinette Hunziker-Ebneter will step down in May 2026, concluding twelve years on the Board of Directors, including eleven as Chair. She is to be replaced by Annelis Lüscher Hämmerli, who has been on the Board of Directors of BEKB since 2019 and is a member of the Audit and Risk Committee.

According to the press release issued on Tuesday, Lüscher Hämmerli will be proposed for election at next year's Annual General Meeting.

Lüscher Hämmerli has broad expertise in the area of risk management. She has held various management positions at Swiss Life Asset Managers in Zurich since 2004 and was appointed Chief Risk Officer in 2016. Lüscher Hämmerli has been CFO and a member of the Executive Management of Helvetia Group since 2020.

Exit from Helvetia after Merger with Baloise

According to the press release, she will «leave Helvetia Group by April 2026 at the latest due to her candidacy as Chair of the Board of Directors at BEKB». In connection with merger of Helvetia and Baloise in April, it was announced that Lüscher Hämmerli would be leaving the Group Executive Management at her own request in order to concentrate on her existing and new mandates outside Helvetia.

«I am very pleased that Annelis Lüscher Hämmerli, a competent internal candidate, has been put forward as my preferred candidate for election», commented Hunziker-Ebneter.

According to the press release, BEKB's strong position as a leading bank in sustainability – with solid capitalization and robust earning power – is largely credited to the leadership of the outgoing Chair. The proposed succession plan will ensure continuity in the bank's top management body.