WILFRIED VERSTRAETE

About WILFRIED VERSTRAETE

Wilfried Verstraete is a Belgian international business leader best known today for serving as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Worldline, the European payments company listed on Euronext. He was co-opted as an independent director on 20 March 2024 and subsequently appointed Chairman after Worldline’s June 2024 general meeting. At Worldline, he also chairs the Remuneration Committee, serves as Vice-Chairman of the Nomination Committee, and sits on the Investment Committee. His career was built on a strong foundation in finance and operational leadership across international, technology-intensive environments. He began as an internal auditor before moving into senior finance roles within the France Télécom ecosystem, where he served as CFO of key divisions. He later joined Allianz in Munich as CFO of AGCS, the corporate and specialty business. In early 2009, he was appointed Group CEO of Euler Hermes, now Allianz Trade, a role he held for twelve years. At Euler Hermes, Verstraete led the business through the global financial crisis and the Covid period while overseeing a major transformation. Worldline describes his tenure as one in which the group evolved from a conventional trade credit insurer into a fully integrated, agile market leader with advanced digital solutions for clients. He also played a key role in the company’s broader technology overhaul, aligning strategic ambition with execution. That mix of financial discipline, resilience, and digital transformation is central to his professional reputation. His profile is also distinctly international. A Belgian national based in France, he has worked extensively across multiple countries and is fluent in Dutch, French, English, and German. He holds graduate degrees in economics from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the Vlaamse Economische Hogeschool, and completed the International Executive Program at INSEAD. As Worldline’s chairman, he represents a governance transition focused on strategic oversight, stakeholder confidence, and long-term value creation during a pivotal phase for the company.