Urban Bäckström
Urban Bäckström | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 25, 1954 Sollefteå, Västernorrlands län, Sweden |
| Occupation | Economist |
| Years active | 1980s–present |
| Known for | Governor of the Bank of Sweden (1994–2002), CEO of the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise (2005–2014) |
Urban Bäckström (born 25 May 1954 in Sollefteå, Västernorrlands län) is a distinguished Swedish economist who held the position of CEO at the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise between 2005 and 2014, and previously served as governor of the Bank of Sweden from 1994 until 2002.
Personal life
Raised in Visby and later in Helsingborg, Bäckström completed his academic studies in economics at Stockholm University. He is married to Ewa, who works for SAS, and together they have two children.
Career
Bäckström’s professional journey started at the Ministry of Finance under the administration of Thorbjörn Fälldin. Subsequently, he became the chief economist for the centre-right Moderate Party. In his role as state secretary at the Ministry of Finance, he was instrumental in addressing Sweden’s financial turmoil during the early 1990s. Upon his appointment as governor of the Bank of Sweden in 1994, he focused on stabilizing the Swedish krona, especially in response to the 1997 Asian financial crisis. During this period, he also held a board position at the Bank for International Settlements.
Following his departure from the central bank in 2002, Bäckström took on the role of CEO at Skandia Liv, a division within the Skandia insurance group. Three years later, he assumed leadership as CEO of the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise, an organization representing leading Swedish employers and corporations.
Since 2003, he has been affiliated with the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences as a member.