Former IKEA exec nominated as new Svenska Spel chair
Eva-Lotta Sjöstedt spent a decade with global furniture store, with the Swedish government also recommending Anna Gagner-Geeber and Johan Wilsby to join the operator’s board
The Swedish government has nominated former IKEA head Eva-Lotta Sjöstedt to replace Erik Strand as chair of state-owned operator Svenska Spel.
The proposal will be voted on at Svenska Spel’s AGM, due to be held on 24 April, with current chair Strand having been in the position since 2016.
Sjöstedt holds several positions on various boards, including as non-executive director and chair of ESG committee for Alliance Pharmaceuticals.
She also sits on the boards of Finnish telecommunications firm Elisa and food retailer Metro AG.
Prior to taking on non-executive director roles, Sjöstedt was CEO of Scandinavian luxury brand Georg Jensen between January 2016 and November 2018 and CEO of German department store group Karstadt from February 2014 to December 2014.
The proposed Svenska Spel CEO spent 10 years with IKEA Group, having worked her way up from logistics manager to executive manager of global retail by the time she left in October 2013.
Alongside Sjöstedt’s nomination, the government also recommended Anna Gagner-Geeber and Johan Wilsby as board members.
Gagner-Geeber has served as legal counsel for several Swedish firms, including Scandinavian Airlines. She currently works within the Swedish ministry of finance as a lawyer.
Wilsby, currently CFO of payment firm Loomis, has igaming experience from his time with Kindred Group as CFO between October 2020 and August 2023 as well as serving on Relax Gaming’s board from October 2021 to August 2023.
The government additionally nominated Eivor Andersson, Stefan Berg, Gunilla Herlitz, Nyamko Sabuni and Anne Arneby for re-election.
Of those who are up for re-election, Andersson has been on the board since September 2016, with Hertlitz having a seat since 2019.
Berg joined the board last April, while Sabuni, founder and CEO of venture capital firm Sabuni and Partners, first joined the board in April 2023.
Arneby, chair of data security software company Amido, has sat on the board since April 2020.
Neither Hanna Lagercrantz, who joined in 2024, or Lars Nilsson, who joined in 2018, have been put forward for re-election.
The nominations and re-elections come a week after the operator promoted Amäni Radwan to replace departing CFO Eva Stoppel.
Last month, Svenska Spel reported flat year-on-year rise in net gaming revenue for Q4 2024, with the figure standing at SEK2.1bn (£156.9bn).
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