The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has appointed Grzegorz Zielinski as Managing Director for South-Eastern Europe, effective 1 June 2026, in a move that reinforces the institution’s long-term focus on infrastructure, energy transition and economic resilience across the region.
Based in Belgrade, Zielinski will oversee the Bank’s operations across the six Western Balkans economies, as well as Bulgaria, Romania and Greece. He succeeds Charlotte Ruhe, who is retiring at the end of June after leading the Bank’s wider regional portfolio.
In his new role, Zielinski will guide the EBRD’s investment strategy and policy engagement across south-eastern Europe, working closely with governments, private-sector partners and institutional stakeholders to support sustainable growth, green transition goals and competitiveness across the region.
A Polish national, Zielinski joined the EBRD in 1998 from Ernst & Young. Over nearly three decades at the Bank, he has held a series of senior leadership positions spanning energy, infrastructure and regional operations. His career included leading investments in the power and utilities sector, coordinating renewable energy activities in central Europe and serving as Country Director for Poland before taking on broader responsibilities across the Baltic states and central Europe.
In 2018, he became Regional Director for Central Europe and the Baltic States, overseeing operations in eight countries and managing five EBRD offices. Since 2021, he has served as Director, Energy Europe within the Bank’s Sustainable Infrastructure Group, leading efforts to advance energy transition and green investment policies across Europe.
The appointment comes at a moment when south-eastern Europe is becoming increasingly central to Europe’s wider economic and energy transformation. The EBRD’s activities in the region continue to focus on sustainable infrastructure, energy security, climate-aligned investment, private-sector development and institutional reform, particularly in economies still navigating complex transition and accession processes.
With major infrastructure projects, renewable energy investments and regional connectivity initiatives accelerating across the Adria and wider south-eastern European space, Zielinski’s appointment signals the EBRD’s intention to deepen its strategic engagement in one of Europe’s most dynamic, and still evolving, economic regions.
Our June issue of The Region will feature an exclusive interview with Grzegorz Zielinski on the future of investment, infrastructure and energy transition across South-Eastern Europe.
