Changes in PPF management: Petr Kolář appointed Chief of Foreign Affairs; Kateřina Jirásková becomes Group’s new Chief Financial Officer
01/02/2013

PPF Group is announcing further changes in its management. With effect from January 2013, Petr Kolář, a Czech diplomat of long standing, is joining PPF in the newly-established role of Chief of Foreign Affairs. Kateřina Jirásková, until now the CEO of Generali PPF Asset Management, is taking over as the Chief Financial Officer at PPF Group and the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of PPF a.s. She is replacing Pavel Horák in the latter position, as he becomes the CFO at Home Credit Group with effect from 1 January 2013; he is also a member of the Board of Directors at Home Credit B.V. This previously-announced change in the CFO positions at Home Credit and PPF is part of the management structure changes associated with the departure of Jiří Šmejc as a PPF shareholder and his assumption of the CEO role at Home Credit Group.

Petr Kolář will be responsible for forming PPF’s international relations, with emphasis primarily on the existing and emerging markets in Asia. “We expect Petr Kolář, an experienced and internationally-respected diplomat, to support relations with our partners primarily in the fast-growing Asian economies. Those are among the growth priorities of both Home Credit and PPF Group,” said Jiří Šmejc, CEO, Home Credit Group. 

Brief profiles

Petr Kolář
Petr Kolář graduated from the Faculty of Arts of Charles University and focused on contemporary history and international relationships as part of his postgraduate curriculum. He worked at the Institute for Contemporary History of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic while serving as an editor of the international columns of various Czech periodicals from 1990. He completed several study visits in the US and the UK in the early 1990s, and also served his guest tenure at the Norwegian Nobel Institute in Oslo in 1993. Between December 1993 and the end of 2012, he held various executive positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, including the post of Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs: he worked as the ambassador to the Kingdom of Sweden (1996-1998), the Republic of Ireland (1999-2003), the US (2005-2010), and the Russian Federation (2010-2012). He was also the international policy advisor to President Václav Havel in 1999. As a member of the PPF management team, he will be in charge of the Group’s international relations with emphasis on operations in Asia.

Kateřina Jirásková
Having graduated from the University of Economics, Kateřina Jirásková worked as a securities trader at Conseq, and joined PPF Group in 2000 as a portfolio manager. During the last eight years, she directed Generali PPF Asset Management. Her responsibility therefore included the management of one of the largest portfolios in Central and Eastern Europe, totalling CZK 209 billion by mid-2012. She was also responsible for the performance of investments made by Generali PPF Holding’s 27 firms in 14 countries; their assets amount to EUR 15 billion. With effect from January 2013, she becomes the Chief Financial Officer of PPF Group.

Pavel Horák
Pavel Horák graduated from the Faculty of Economics and Administration of Masaryk University in Brno and the Faculty of Finance and Accounting of the University of Economics in Prague. He acquired his professional experience in finance management at Deloitte & Touche where he worked as an auditor, and later during his long-term tenure at TV Nova where he served as the Chief Financial Officer from 2001 to 2006. He is a Chartered Certified Accountant and a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA UK). He joined PPF in 2006. He held the position of PPF Group’s Chief Financial Officer until the end of 2012. With effect from January 2013, he takes over as the Chief Financial Officer at Home Credit Group.

Notes for Editors on PPF Group:
PPF is one of the largest investment and finance groups in Central and Eastern Europe. With approximately EUR 17.6 billion assets under management (as at 30 June 2012), PPF’s activities range from banking and insurance to real estate, energy, mining and agriculture to Russia’s largest consumer electronics retail chain. PPF’s reach spans from Central and Eastern Europe to Russia and across Asia.

Contact:
Radek Stavěl
Spokesperson of PPF Group
phone: +420 224 174 748
mobile: +420 724 875 932
email: stavel@ppf.cz