Hugo Lasat has been at the helm of Belgian private bank Degroof Petercam for almost a year and a half. The biggest challenge of a bank CEO is constantly being in decision mode, he said in an interview with Investment Officer. “Procrastination is not done.”
Every fortnight, Investment Officer Belgium fires off some personal questions on a leading professional in the financial sector. Hugo Lasat, CEO of Degroof Petercam, this time looks into De Spiegel, or mirror, as the series is known in Belgium.
Where did your fascination with the financial sector originate?
“It overtook me during my first job, at one of the then big eight consulting firms. When I came into contact with the financial sector there, it very quickly hijacked my heart. Not much later, I changed jobs and became portfolio manager at the then BACOB and what is now Belfius. That felt like coming home. Because to begin with, there I could analyse, implement and see the result on behalf of others. And not alone, because it’s not a solitary job, you do them together with others. I have always sought that responsibility from A to Z throughout my career, even though it can be stressful. On top of that, I found out that finance impacts every aspect of our lives.”
What is the biggest misconception about the financial sector?
“It is frustrating that the financial sector is often unfairly under fire. Our sector has an impact on the economic story, on corporate stories and on individuals’ stories. The financial sector is a lever to make things happen and this is sometimes underestimated by both the wider society and the political world. The sector also serves society, something people don’t always realise.”
What is the most important key moment of your career?
“In 2000, I was working at Cordius Asset Management, when it became known that we would merge with Dexia Asset Management. I then unsolicitedly crawled into my pen to write down my vision of the future of that new asset manager. I then forwarded that text to a member of the management committee. I had no agenda, except that I wanted to provide input to avoid our achievements disappearing. Six weeks later, I was suddenly invited to come and explain my vision. The meeting that would normally last an hour ran all afternoon. And there it was decided that I would lead the new merger company. That was a beautiful and unexpected gift.”
What is the biggest challenge as CEO of a bank?
“I quickly learned that putting a vision on paper is something completely different from implementing it. What eventually ends up on the CEO’s desk is never business as usual. It is usually the urgent matters that come your way. That is why it is essential that you are constantly in decision mode. Procrastination is not done. A CEO must be able to make decisions at any time, based on both objective factors and intuition.”
How important is a CEO?
“The importance of my role as CEO is overrated. The team that surrounds the CEO is more important than the CEO himself. That team is really crucial for the company.”
What professional decision do you regret?
“No doubt I should have done many things differently. The important thing is that you learn from mistakes and take those lessons into the future.”
Professionally, what was the toughest period in your life?
“During my career, I went through three mergers. By definition, those are always tough periods, both for yourself and for the people you work with. Then you have to constantly adapt and you cannot miss any opportunities for the company you are responsible for. That is intense. The banking crisis in 2007 and 2008 was also particularly intense, also personally. But at those moments you do see the real qualities of your colleagues come to the surface.”
At what point do you still have the most potential to improve?
“I have made little effort in the past to balance the work-life balance. During my career, I undoubtedly went too far towards my work. My wife handled my absence brilliantly. But all the time you invest in your professional career, you don’t spend with friends or family. I do realise that now and perhaps I should have paid more attention to that.”
What do you do now to balance the work-life balance?
“I have to admit that I still haven’t found a balance in that. Sometimes I catch myself giving advice on this to colleagues and not following my own advice. I’m not proud of that.”
Hugo Lasat was born in Etterbeek, Belgium, in 1964. He obtained a Master in Economics and a Master-after-Master in Finance from the KU Leuven Campus Brussels. He started his career in 1986 at Arthur Andersenand built up more than 30 years of experience in the financial sector (Bacob Bank, AG Asset Management, Paribas Asset Management, Bank Paribas Belgium, Cordius Asset Management, Amonis, Candriam and Dexia Group). In 2011, he joined Petercam as partner and head of Petercam Institutional Asset Management. In 2016, he took charge of DPAM, following the merger between Degroof and Petercam. In October 2021, he was appointed executive director and new CEO of Degroof Petercam. Hugo Lasat is a visiting professor at the KU Leuven Campus Brussels and is a director of Baloise Holding as well as a member of governing bodies of non-profit organisations.
This article originally appeared in Dutch on InvestmentOfficer.be.