"DIE ERSTE österreichische Spar-Casse - Bank AG" merged with "GiroCredit Bank Aktiengesellschaft der Sparkassen" and changed its name in "Erste Bank der oesterreichischen Sparkassen AG" operating under the name "Erste Bank". The new bank went public at the Vienna Stock Exchange in November 1997.
Customer base: 600.000
In February 2000, Erste Bank acquired a majority stake in Česká spořitelna, the biggest retail bank in the Czech Republic.
Customer base: 6.2 Million
From the start of 2001, Erste Bank became the majority shareholder of Slovenská sporitel’na, the largest Slovak bank.
Customer base: 8 Million
Erste Bank created the 3rd largest banking group in Croatia through the merger of Erste&Steiermärkische Bank d.d. and Rijecka banka d.d.
Customer base: 11.3 Million
Erste Bank and Postabank completed the merger to form Hungary's second largest retail bank.
Customer base: 11.8 Million
Erste Bank acquired a majority stake in Novosadska banka a.d., Novi Sad from the Republic of Serbia.
Customer base: 12.4 Million
Erste Bank finalised acquisition of Banca Comerciala Romana S.A. (BCR), the biggest bank in Romania.
Customer base: 15.9 Million
Legal separation of the Austrian business of “Erste Bank der oesterreichischen Sparkassen AG” from the newly founded holding company “Erste Group Bank AG”. New holding structure with the focus of improving Group governance.
Customer base: 17.2 Million
Erste Group acquires a controlling interest of 49% in Santander Bank Polska S.A., Poland's third-largest bank.
Customer base: 23.0 Million
Today, Erste Group operates directly or indirectly in 12 countries with a uniform market presence.
Chair of the Management Board and CFO
Appointed until 31/12/2027
Born in 1979
Gerda Holzinger-Burgstaller has been at the Erste Group since 2006. She was Head of Group Prudential Affairs from 2013 to 2015, before managing the General Secretariat of the Erste Holding. She has also been a board member of Die Zweite Wiener Vereins-Sparcasse AG since 2017.
She became Chief Risk Officer and Chief Financial Officer in July 2019, and was appointed Chair of the Erste Bank Oesterreich Executive Board in October 2020. In July 2024 she took on the CFO function in addition to her existing role as CEO.
Responsible for:
Human Resources; Co-operation with Sparkassen; Brand Management, Marketing & Communications; Group Secretariat; Social Banking; Health Centre; Audit; Strategy; Legal; Balance Sheet Management & ALM; Planung; Controlling; Rechnungswesen; Information & Data Management; Procurement
Chief Retail Officer and Chief Operating Officer
Interim Chief Corporates Officer
Appointed until 30.06.2027
Born in 1981
Maximilian Clary und Aldringen has been the management board member responsible for retail customers since July 2024. He was most recently Head of Private Banking & Wealth Management at both Erste Group and Erste Bank Oesterreich. Clary und Aldringen has been with Erste Group since 2013 and has held various strategic positions within the banking group, including as head of Group Strategy. A graduate in business administration, Clary und Aldringen also has an Executive MBA from the London Business School.
Responsible for:
Retail Sales & Distribution; George Österreich; Private Banking & Wealth Management; Retail Segment Management; IT & Operations
Chief Risk Officer
Appointed until 31.07.2028
Born 1972
Ilinka Kajgana has taken on the responsibility for Risk and Operations at Erste Bank Oesterreich as of August 2024. Most recently, she had been an Executive Board Member as the Risk Executive Vice President of Erste Group’s Romanian banking subsidiary Banca Comercială Română (BCR). The native Croatian was Head of Strategic Risk Management at Erste Bank Oesterreich before taking on her role at BCR. Prior to that, she held various risk management positions at Erste Group. Kajgana holds a PhD in Physics from the Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien) and launched her banking career at Erste Bank Oesterreich.
Responsible for:
Enterprise wide Risk Management; Liquidity and Market Risk Management; Credit Risk Portfolio; Credit Risk Methods; Retail Risk Management; Corporate Risk Management; Compliance
Univ.-Prof. MMag. Dr. Gottfried Haber, Vorsitzender
Dr. Peter Bosek, Vorsitzender-Stellvertreter
Mag. Marie-Hélène Ametsreiter
Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Christine Antlanger-Winter
Dr. Christine Catasta
Prof. Dipl.Ing. Mag. Friedrich Rödler
Lilly-Marie Kunz, BSc (WU) LL.M. (WU)
Representatives of the Staff Council:
Mag. Karin Baumegger
BSc. BA Julia Böhm
Christian Tschabitscher
Kurt Zangerle
Chairman of the Management Board, CEO
Responsible for:
Staff Appointments, Operations and IT Management
Vice Chairman of the Management Board, CRO
Responsible for:
Risk Management, CTO deputy - IT systems+architecture
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Corporate Banking and Financial Markets
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
IT and Banking Operations
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Retail Banking, CTO deputy - IT operations
Member of the Management Board, CFO
Responsible for:
Financial Management
Chairman of the Management Board, CEO
Responsible for:
Bank's Strategy, Brand Development, Human Ressources
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Retail Banking, Corporate Banking, Financial Markets
Member of the Management Board, CFO, CRO
Responsible for:
Finance and Risk Management
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
IT and Banking Operations
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Corporate Banking, Financial Markets
Chairman of the Management Board, CEO
Responsible for:
Corporates & Markets, Marketing, Communication, Human Resources, Internal Audit, Legal, Compliance and Financial Crime, Customer Experience
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Retail, Private Banking
Member of the Management Board, CRO
Responsible for:
Risk Management
Member of the Management Board, COO
Responsible for:
Operations
Member of the Management Board, CFO
Responsible for:
Accounting, Controlling, Balance Sheet Management, Strategy and Performance Management, Rating Agencies and Investor Relations, Subsidiaries and Investment Management, Real Estate Management
Chairman of the Management Board, CEO
Responsible for:
HR, Marketing, PR, Strategic Management, Legal Services and Corporate Secretariat
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Corporates and Markets
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Retail, Digital Channels and Contact Center, Micro
Member of the Management Board, COO
Responsible for:
IT, Operations, Security Management
Member of the Management Board, CFO
Responsible for:
Controlling, Finance & Accounting, ALM, Facility and Property Management, Procurement
Member of the Management Board, CRO
Responsible for:
Risk Management, Compliance
Chairman of the Management Board, CEO
Responsible for:
Property and Cash Management Division, Economic Research Department, Internal Audit Department, Human Resources, Communication Department, Collection and Work-out Department, Compliance Department, Corporate Security Department, Corporates and Markets
Member of the Management Board, COO
Responsible for:
IT Division, Organization Department, Processing Division
Member of the Management Board, CFO
Responsible for:
Accounting & Controlling Division, Assets and Liabilities Management Department
Member of the Management Board, CRO
Responsible for:
Risk Management Division, Legal Department
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Retail, Retail Business Development, Direct Channels, Digital Banking
Chairman of the Management Board, CEO
Responsible for:
Retail Banking, Human Resources, Marketing & Communication, Property, Secretariat
Member of the Management Board
Responsible for:
Corporates, Financial Markets, Real Estate & Special Finance
Member of the Management Board, CRO, CFO
Responsible for:
Risk Management, Accounting & Controlling, ALM, Compliance/AML, Legal
Member of the Management Board, COO
Responsible for:
IT, Operations, Digital and Security