● The inaugural winner of this new award designed to recognise the talent and commitment of younger generations working in or representing pension funds as trustees, Anna Dovbisa is the 39-year-old CEO of Latvia’s SEB Open Pension Fund (SEB), which is now the Baltic state’s second largest pensions provider with some €215m under management. She has led the company for the past two years.

● Dovbisa has risen quickly through the ranks at the SEB Group in Latvia, where she previously held roles in risk, customer support and financing. They have provided her with the knowledge, skills and experience to assume the role of CEO of the open pensions group. This is a complete role that extends to contributing to legislation reviews and reforms to improve pensions regulations and investment frameworks in Latvia in addition to providing services to enhance the financial literacy of its members.

● Another achievement under her leadership is the increased strong focus on SEB’s sustainability. The degree of portfolio integration of ESG and SRI considerations is now 76%. It has also introduced a climate fund that conforms to the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulations and a digital portal where members can view the sustainability scores of their assets and gain better understanding of the concept.

● Another key development under Dovbisa’s guidance is the establishment of SEB’s Customer Council, a series of events designed to strengthen and underpin ambassadorship and member engagement. The average assessment score of these events is 4.9 out of a possible 5 stars.

● Key to SEB’s investment strategy is a focus on local investments that are implemented mainly through alternative funds. These not only generate returns but also contribute to the development of the economy of Latvia and of its Baltic neighbours. This commitment has led to the creation of solar and wind parks, improved forest management, job creation and the strengthening of local communities. To offset the limited size of SEB’s local and regional investment universe, most of its asset base is now invested globally, especially in the US, Europe and emerging markets. The investment strategy therefore represents a blend of local impact investments with a wide variety of global investments in all major asset classes in line with Latvia’s investment restrictions for pension funds.

● Active asset management is SEB’s preferred means to implement its strategy. Alongside colleagues at SEB Investment Management, the pensions team monitors and adjusts the portfolios of its two actively-managed pension funds to manage their risk/return profiles effectively. Broad diversification and robust risk management are crucial components. At the same time, by launching the SEB Climate Index Pension Fund, it has successfully responded to two trends that have emerged during the last 3-5 years in Latvia: increased customer interest in passive products and the concept of sustainability.

● Dovbisa also takes great pride in strengthening her team’s spirit and engagement: in 2023, they scored the highest employee Insight Survey score ever, including the highest score for management.