Pohjola Pankki Oyj - Changes board/management/auditors

Petri Viertiö Appointed Pohjola's CRO

Pohjola Bank plc         Company Release 
Release category: Changes/management                                         
23 January 2009 at 3.30  pm Finnish time (GMT+2)                             

Petri Viertiö Appointed Pohjola's CRO                                           

Petri Viertiö, M.Sc. (Tech.), has been appointed Pohjola Group's Chief Risk     
Officer (CRO) and an Executive Committee member, effective as of 3 March 2009.  
He will be reporting to Mikael Silvennoinen, Pohjola Group's President and CEO. 

Viertiö worked for Ernst & Young as Director, Advisory Services, with risk      
management within his remit. Before that during 2002-07, he worked as Chief Risk
Officer for Sampo Plc.                                                          

From 3 March 2009, Pohjola Group's Executive Committee will comprise Mikael     
Silvennoinen (Chairman), President and CEO; Jouko Pölönen, CFO; Petri Viertiö,  
CRO; Reima Rytsölä, Executive Vice President, Banking; Tomi Yli-Kyyny, Executive
Vice President, Non-life Insurance; and Mikko Koskimies, Executive Vice         
President, Asset Management.                                                    

Jouko Pölönen, the present CRO, took up his duties as Pohjola Group's CFO on 1  
January 2009 and will remain the Group's CRO until Viertiö takes up the CRO     
duties.                                                                         


Pohjola Bank plc                                                                


Markku Koponen                                                                  
Senior Vice President                                                           

For more information, please contact: Mikael Silvennoinen, President and CEO,   
tel. +358 (0)10 252 2549                                                        

Distribution                                                                    
NASDAQ OMX Helsinki                                                             
London Stock Exchange                                                           
SWX Swiss Exchange                                                              
Major media                                                                     
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