NETHERLANDS - The board of the PGGM cooperative has appointed Frank de Grave as its new chairman.

He succeeds Hans Alders, who resigned on 1 January 2010. Alders had been chairman of both the cooperative and the pension fund PfZW, after the former pension fund PGGM had been divided up into PfZW and its provider PGGM.

De Grave, 54, has been chair of the Dutch Care Authority for five years as well as Defence Minister and Secretary of State for Social Affairs, and is currently board adviser at consultancy Twijnstra Gudde.

The new chairman was earlier spokesman on finance for the liberal party VVD in the Dutch parliament, and has been active at ABN Amro Bank.

De Grave served two months as financial director at DSB Bank in spring 2009, before the bank collapsed at the end of the year.

"De Grave has more than earned his credentials as a board member on both finance as care," commented Martin van Rijn, executive chairman of PGGM.

"That's why he is excellently suited to further shape the PGGM co-operative together with its board."

De Grave considers himself to be closely involved with the care sector as he commented: "Therefore, I am very pleased to be enabled to be active to the benefit of the sector through this chairmanship. It is a big challenge to contribute to enhancing the cooperative for people in the sector of care and wellbeing."

PGGM's cooperative board is responsible for the identity, mission, view and financial policy frameworks of the cooperative, and is the full shareholder of PGGM, the pensions provider for the €91bn healthcare scheme PfZW.

The cooperative's board is accountable to PGGM's members' board of employers and employees.

PGGM manages €93bn in assets under management.

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