Changes to group management

Tom Rathke (50) has been appointed new managing director of Vital and group
executive vice president in DnB NOR. Evlyn Raknerud, group executive vice
president, Human Resources and Group Services, has decided to retire this
August at the age of 60 in accordance with her pension agreement. 
 
Tom Rathke leaves his position as financial director in Vital and commences as
managing director today. He will manage Norway's largest pension company with
total assets of NOK 223 billion, 950 employees and more than one million
policyholders. 
 
Up till 2004, he was head of the mutual fund company Avanse. He has held
managerial positions in If Skadeforsikring, Vesta, SAS and Dyno. Tom Rathke is
a graduate of BI Norwegian School of Management and has a Master's Degree from
the University of Wisconsin and has an Advanced Management Program from Harvard
University. 
 
Rune Bjerke, DnB NOR's group chief executive, is very pleased that the best
applicant was an internal candidate. 
 
"We have completed a very thorough process and considered both external and
internal candidates. It is then pleasing that the best candidate was found
internally in Vital. I look forward to a fruitful cooperation with Tom and am
sure that he will head Vital in an excellent manner in future," says Rune
Bjerke. 
 
Evlyn Raknerud is retiring after 40 years in Postbanken, DnB and DnB NOR. She
was chief employee representative of the Finance Sector Union in DnC and DnB
during the banking crisis. In recent years, she has been a member of the group
management team in DnB NOR and the former DnB. 
 
Group chief executive Rune Bjerke emphasises the important role that Evlyn
Raknerud has had in the Norwegian financial industry and DnB NOR. 
 
"During the banking crisis in the late 1980s, Evelyn played a key role as
employee representative. Her broad experience has been invaluable, ensuring
that both fellow workers and employee representatives experienced the DnB NOR
merger as a successful operation."