Nicola Beer Appointed as First Female German Vice-President on EIB Management Committee

(IN BRIEF) Nicola Beer has been appointed as the first female Vice-President on the European Investment Bank’s (EIB) Management Committee, representing Germany. With a background in law and politics, Beer brings extensive experience from her roles as a member of the European Parliament, rapporteur on the Critical Raw Materials Act, and various positions in the German liberal party FDP, including State Secretary for European Affairs and State Minister of Education and Cultural Affairs. Her appointment marks a significant step towards gender diversity on the EIB’s Management Committee and is part of the institution’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its impact in serving the European Union and its economy. EIB President Werner Hoyer welcomes her to the team, emphasizing her enthusiasm for European initiatives and her potential to contribute to the bank’s success.

(PRESS RELEASE) LUXEMBOURG, 16-Dec-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — The European Investment Bank (EIB) is pleased to announce the appointment of Nicola Beer to its Management Committee. Following her nomination by Germany and a decision by the Bank’s shareholders – the EU Member States – Beer has been appointed the first ever female EIB Vice-President from Germany on its Management Committee.

Beer has been a vice-president and member of the European Parliament for the liberal Renew-faction. As Member of the European Parliament, she worked especially in the Committees for Economy and Currencies, for Foreign Affairs and for Industry and Sciences. She has served as rapporteur on the Critical Raw Materials Act that has been adopted by the European Parliament on 12 December 2023. She has been part of the Parliament’s delegation to the Conference on the Future of Europe in 2021/22.

A bank clerk and lawyer, she joined the German liberal party FDP in 1991 and started her political career in the German state of Hesse, where she served as State secretary for European affairs and from 2012 to 2014 as State Minister of Education and Cultural Affairs. In 2017, she became a member of Bundestag. From 2013 until 2019, she was also General Secretary of the liberal party FDP.

During EIB-President Werner Hoyer`s tenure that ends on 31 December 2023, there was no German national acting as one of eight vice-presidents on the EIB`s Management Committee. On 1 January 2024, Hoyer will be succeeded by the First Vice-President of the Government of Spain and Minister of Economy, Trade and Enterprise Nadia Calviño.

EIB President Werner Hoyer welcomes the new Vice-President: “I have known Nicola Beer, an enthusiastic European, for many years, and I am glad that she will join the EIB`s Management Committee to support the EU bank to further its impact in serving the EU`s people and the economy in the coming years.”

“I feel honoured to be appointed as Vice-President of the European Investment Bank, the EU-Bank that is the biggest multilateral financial institution in the world, and one of the largest providers of climate finance”, Nicola Beer said. “EIB financing is a key tool for boosting the competitiveness of the European economy, promoting innovation, and building partnerships throughout the world. The EIB is thus contributing significantly to Europe`s strategic sovereignty. I am excited to be a member of its Management Committee and contribute to its success.”

Background information

The Management Committee is the EIB’s permanent collegiate executive body. It has nine members – the President and eight Vice Presidents. Under the authority of the President and the supervision of the Board of Directors, it oversees the day-to-day running of the EIB, prepares decisions for Directors and ensures that these are implemented. Its members are appointed by the Board of Governors, consisting of EU finance ministers, on a proposal from the Board of Directors.

The EIB Group is the EU’s long-term financing institution, owned by its member states. It consists of the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF). It finances sound investment that contributes to EU policy goals, including social and territorial cohesion, competitiveness, innovation, and the just transition to climate neutrality.

In response to the war in Ukraine, the EIB has raised its financing volumes for clean energy to a record, backing critical investment needed to help Europe escape the shackles of dependency on fossil-fuel imports. The EU bank has also increased its financing for security projects to unprecedented levels.

The EIB was the first multilateral development bank to end support for fossil fuels and has committed to support €1 trillion in climate investment this decade. Over half of the EIB Group’s lending in 2022 was devoted to climate and environmental sustainability projects, while almost half of the EIB’s financing inside the EU was signed for projects in cohesion regions, where per-capita income is lower, highlighting the Bank’s commitment to equitable growth.

The EIB Group is Europe’s innovation champion. The EIF supports Europe’s SMEs by improving their access to finance through a wide range of selected financial intermediaries, such as banks, guarantee and leasing companies, micro-credit providers and private equity funds. The EIF designs and offers equity and debt financing instruments fostering EU objectives, and leverages EU funding tools, such as the InvestEU programme, to support of entrepreneurship, growth, innovation, research and development, the digital transition and employment. Earlier this year, it launched the European Tech Champions Initiative, an ambitious Fund of Funds that seeks to make sure that tech pioneers made in Europe, stay in Europe.

EIB’s operations outside the EU are carried out by EIB Global. As a key partner in the EU’s Global Gateway, we aim to support at least €100 billion of investment by 2028, one third of the strategy’s target. With offices across the world, EIB Global is close to local people, firms and institutions, and fosters strong Team Europe partnerships with development finance institutions.

For more information on the EIB Group’s role and activities see here.

Media Contact:

Donata Riedel
d.riedel@eib.org
+352 4379 – 86192

Press Office

press@eib.org
+352 4379 – 21000

SOURCE: European Investment Bank