ZEAL Network confirms new CFO
German lottery giant promotes from within, with Andrea Behrendt to take on top finance job after Sebastian Bielski calls time on his spell with the operator
ZEAL Network is set to promote company stalwart Andrea Behrendt to become CFO from 1 April following Sebastian Bielski’s resignation.
Behrendt currently serves as ZEAL’s vice-president of group controlling and portfolio management for the German lottery company.
She is also the CFO for the business’s LOTTO24 subsidiary, a position she has held since October 2023.
Behrendt originally joined the Hamburg-based company as head of finance in July 2015 before taking on the vice-president role in November 2018.
She will replace Bielski as the group’s finance chief, with the latter’s final day of employment with ZEAL set to be 31 March.
Bielski told the ZEAL board that he wishes to depart to “pursue new professional challenges”.
Bielski took on the ZEAL CFO job in October 2023, having joined the operator from solar energy firm Energiekonzepte Deutschland.
He has agreed to complete the ongoing annual report before Behrendt takes on the position from 1 April.
On his departure, Bielski noted: “I did not take the decision lightly, as ZEAL is an extremely dynamic and attractive company with a great and highly motivated team.”
Behrendt said: “I would like to thank the supervisory board for the trust they have placed in me and look forward to the opportunity to help shape the future of ZEAL with my colleagues on the management board and the entire team.”
Peter Steiner, ZEAL chair, added: “We are delighted to welcome Andrea Behrendt as a member of the ZEAL management board. With her deep financial and long-standing industry expertise, she brings excellent qualifications to support ZEAL in the next phase of growth.
“On behalf of the supervisory board, we would like to thank Sebastian Bielski for his exceptional commitment and his significant contribution to the positive development of the company.”
Arnold Ash is EGR’s Executive Recruitment Partner. They support ambitious organisations to identify and attract industry leading executive talent. Find out more here.