Bjorn Saven, (born 1950) is a Swedish industrialist and investor. He is the founder and former chairman and chief executive of IK Partners (formerly Industri Kapital) a leading European private equity firm focused on acquisitions across the Nordics, Benelux, Germany and France, with funds raised in excess of €14 billion.

Background

Saven was born in Stockholm and grew up there and in Nerike in the middle of Sweden. Bjorn and his wife Inger have three adult children.

Education

Saven holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from

Stockholm School of Economics The Stockholm School of Economics (SSE; , HHS) is a private business school located in city district Vasastaden in the central part of Stockholm, Sweden. SSE offers BSc, MSc and MBA programs, along with PhD- and Executive education progr ...

1972 and an MBA from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

1976.

Career

Prior to founding IK Investment Partners in 1988 (within Enskilda Securities until 1993, part of the SEB Bank Group) Bjorn Saven held various positions at the American oil company

Gulf Oil Gulf Oil was a major global oil company in operation from 1901 to 1985. The eighth-largest American manufacturing company in 1941 and the ninth largest in 1979, Gulf Oil was one of the Seven Sisters (oil companies), Seven Sisters oil companies. ...

1972–1974 as well as the Swedish office and retail products group

Esselte Esselte is a manufacturer and marketer of office products and business supplies with subsidiaries in 25 countries and sales in over 120 countries. Esselte makes files, binders, folders, covers, staplers, letter trays and computer accessories under ...

1976–1988. At IK Partners, Bjorn Saven pioneered Private Equity investments in the Nordics and Continental Europe. He raised the first Private Equity fund in the Northern Europe, focusing mainly on investments in, and development of, mid-cap companies with a hands-on operating approach of working with portfolio businesses. He served as Chief Executive from 1989 to 2008 and Executive Chairman 2008 – 2011, chairman from 2011 and emeritus since 2017. Bjorn Saven has also served as a non-executive director at the Nordic bank

Nordea Nordea Bank Abp, commonly referred to as Nordea, is a Nordic financial services group operating in northern Europe with headquarters in Helsinki, Finland. The name is a blend of the words "Nordic" and "idea". The Nordic countries are considered ...

, Swedish industrial group Alfa Laval (deputy chairman), Swedish energy group Vattenfall AB, Norwegian consumer goods group Orkla ASA, and Finnish industrial cranes manufacturer Konecranes Oyj. Saven was chairman of th
British-Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm
for five years and was a director of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce for the United Kingdom 2012-2023 where he was also deputy chairman. He is a member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (, IVA), founded on 24 October 1919 by King Gustaf V, is one of the royal academies in Sweden. The academy is an independent organisation, which promotes contact and exchange between business, ...

where he served as deputy chairman 20011-2013. He is also a member of Utrikespolitiska samfundet (The Swedish Society for International Affairs), a non-profit organisation and parent body o
Utrikespolitiska institutet
(The Swedish Institute of International Affairs).

Received awards

In recognition of his services, Bjorn Saven has been awarded several orders, decorations and medals by governments, universities and other institutions throughout Europe, including: * H.M. The King's Medal, Sweden (12th size w. the Seraphimer Ribbon) for services to industry (2008) * Knight Commander of the Order of Merit of Poland (2022) * Officier of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

, France (2021) * Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) * Knight 1st Class of the Federal Republic of Germany * Commander of the Republic of Finland * Commander of the Kingdom of Belgium Bjorn Saven has also received honorary doctorates from Stockholm School of Economics, Hanken, and Lund Institute of Technology

Philanthropy

* Trustee of the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: * National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra * National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London ...

in London 2017–2024, and Chairman of the Investment Committee * Trustee of UK prenatal care charity Tommy's 2015-2023 * Member of the board of the Heart/Lung Foundation of Sweden from 2023

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saven, Bjorn Stockholm School of Economics alumni Harvard Business School alumni 1950 births Businesspeople from Stockholm Living people 20th-century Swedish businesspeople 21st-century Swedish businesspeople Honorary commanders of the Order of the British Empire