Carl Haglund will not assume the position of CEO at Aktia Bank, ending his tenure before it even began. The bank’s board announced the decision on Monday, stating that Haglund no longer meets the conditions required for the role. Helsingin Sanomat and Yle reported on the news early Monday morning.
The board did not provide further details but confirmed that interim CEO Anssi Huhta will continue leading the bank for now.
Haglund had been appointed in June and was due to officially start in September following a standard onboarding period. This step is customary in the finance sector and ensures full compliance with regulatory requirements.
Finland’s Financial Supervisory Authority (Fiva) stated it had not opposed Haglund’s appointment and had not yet reached a conclusion on his eligibility.
Berndt Hertsberg, a Fiva department head, told Helsingin Sanomat, “We had not yet formed an opinion on the matter. This was the bank’s own decision.”
Questions about Haglund’s suitability arose even before Monday’s announcement. In 2021, Fiva initially deemed him unqualified to lead the pension insurer Veritas. He later completed a nine-month training program and became CEO in June 2022.
Analysts now suggest that the abrupt change at Aktia may be linked more to ownership shifts than to regulatory concerns.
In late August, industrialist Erkki Etola, already Aktia’s largest shareholder, increased his stake to nearly 20 percent. The move coincided with RG Partners exiting its position as a major shareholder.
Kasper Mellas, an analyst at Inderes, said the board’s decision is likely connected to these ownership changes.
“If you look at what has happened at the company since Haglund’s appointment, there’s been a major transaction in which Etola strengthened his ownership and RG Partners exited,” he explained.
The leadership change represents a sharp reversal from the board’s June position, when Chair Matts Rosenberg praised Haglund’s credentials.
“Carl is a visionary and versatile leader,” Rosenberg said at the time. “His broad experience brings the exact energy and momentum needed to implement our updated strategy.”
Haglund has a diverse professional history in both politics and business. He served as Finland’s Minister of Defence from 2012 to 2015 and was a Member of the European Parliament from 2009 to 2012. He also led the Swedish People’s Party from 2012 to 2016.
In the private sector, he has held executive roles at Accenture and led the Nordic operations of Sunshine Kaidi New Energy Group.
Haglund’s appointment was set to follow a period of instability at Aktia. His predecessor, Aleksi Lehtonen, served just one year before stepping down.
The board has not announced any candidates for the next CEO. Fiva emphasized that any future appointment must meet its fit-and-proper criteria, which cover qualifications, experience, and integrity.
Following the announcement, Aktia’s share price fell nearly 2 percent at the opening of trading on Monday. By midday, the decline had moderated to around 1.5 percent.
