From big deals to the bigger picture­ – welcome, Ove Nyström

When Ove Nyström stepped into his new role as Director of Business Area Large Corporates at EKN on 1 August, he was not entering unfamiliar territory.
Nyström succeeds Lena Bertilsson, who retired after heading the business area, and joins EKN’s executive management team. He takes on the role from within Large Corporates itself, most recently as Head of Infrastructure & Telecom – a team handling some of EKN’s largest and most complex transactions.

That makes his appointment both a change and a sign of continuity. Nyström already knows many of the exporters and international banks that make up the Large Corporates community. What changes is the breadth of his view.

“The biggest change is perspective,” he says. “You go from being very close to a particular portfolio and set of customers to seeing patterns across industries, markets and financing structures.”

That wider perspective matters, he adds, because “many of the challenges our customers are facing today cut across traditional sector boundaries.”

From commercial banking to EKN

Nyström brings more than two decades of export-finance experience to the position. Importantly, he has sat on both sides of the table.

His commercial banking background gives him first-hand experience of the considerations facing the international financial institutions that are central to many EKN-backed transactions: how risks are allocated, how financing structures work for lenders and borrowers, and what ultimately makes an export-credit solution bankable.

At EKN, meanwhile, Nyström has worked directly with major Swedish exporters and their customers across international markets. Earlier in his EKN career, as Senior Underwriter and Key Account Manager, he was closely involved with Ericsson transactions around the world, spanning both project finance and financing for established corporate borrowers.

More recently, the Infrastructure & Telecom team under his leadership has covered mobile networks, electricity transmission, power generation, rail, and other major infrastructure, especially within the EPC financing structures.

Opening doors for Swedish exporters

Nyström highlights EKN’s growing cooperation with international EPC companies:

“We highly value this cooperation, and an important added benefit is that it has opened new doors for Swedish exporters – expanding their networks and creating new business opportunities in international markets.”

That points to a role for export finance that goes beyond supporting a Swedish company once it has already secured a contract. By developing relationships with international EPC contractors, EKN helps create connections through which Swedish companies and technologies become part of much larger international projects.

Heading Business Area Large Corporates means maintaining close relationships not only with Sweden’s biggest exporters but also with the global financial institutions and industrial partners that can turn export opportunities into viable transactions.

“Keep challenging us – and involve us early,” Nyström says. “Tell us where you see the opportunities, but also where you see obstacles and where EKN could make a difference.”

The ultimate objective, Nyström stresses, remains unchanged.

“EKN’s role is ultimately about strengthening the competitiveness of Swedish exports, and we can only do that effectively in close partnership with exporters and banks.”

In his spare time, Nyström enjoys a good glass of wine and a game of tennis.