Economics & Finance

Dag Detter

Principal of Detter & Co.; Former President, Swedish National Wealth Fund, Detter & Co.

From 1998 - 2001, Dag Detter led a restructuring of the $70 billion portfolio of companies owned by the Swedish government. The portfolio consisted of more than 60 companies and 200,000 employees. This was the first attempt by a European government to address systematically the ownership & management of government enterprises & real estate.

During the restructuring, Mr. Detter served as the President of Stattum, a holding company that managed part of the Swedish government’s portfolio of businesses. He also served as a Director at the Swedish Ministry of Industry and as Head of the State Enterprise Division within the Ministry.

The companies overseen by Mr. Detter during this period included Vattenfall, the national electricity company; Posten, the national mail and logistics company; Telia, the telecom incumbent; AssiDomän, one of Europe’s largest forestry, paper, and packaging groups; Celsius, one of Europe’s largest defence groups; and the rail operator SJ.

From May 1999 - June 2001, as the restructuring was under way, the value of the Swedish government’s portfolio of assets increased 12%, outperforming the local stock market index which appreciated only 6%. The portfolio also yielded approximately 18 billion USD from divestitures and approximately 7 billion USD from dividends.

Mr. Detter has since advised local and national governments in over 30 countries on how tap the value of their public commercial assets and real estate. The countries where his advisory services have been sought out include Abu Dhabi, Argentina, China, Ethiopia, Finland, Greece, Jordan, Libya, Lituhania, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, the United States, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

He has also advised international institutions such as the Asian Development Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the World Bank. He has consulted for the European Stability Mechanism and Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund.

He has served as Non-Executive Director of both listed and private companies, including Celsius; Telia; Posten; Svenska Kraftnat, the Swedish national electricity company; and Jernhusen, the Swedish national railway holding company.

He speaks English, Swedish, German, French, Mandarin, and Danish.

Government officials, international institutions, and businesses who would like to retain Mr. Detter’s advisory services can do so at Detter & Co., a corporate finance advisory boutique directed by Mr. Detter which specializes in restructuring and managing public commercial assets.

Mr. Detter is the author of Public Wealth, a blog about making government more efficient, generating non-tax revenues, & putting public assets to work.

Known For: Led a restructuring of the $70 billion portfolio of companies owned by the Swedish government, the first attempt by a European government to address systematically the ownership & management of government enterprises & real estate; Mr. Detter has since helped governments in over 30 countries generate billions in non-tax revenue.

Travels From: Stockholm, Sweden.

Education

Legal Studies, Stockholm University (1992 - 1993) · Fudan University (1984 - 1985) · Business Administration & Sinology, Lund University (1982 - 1986) · Royal Naval College, Stockholm (1979 - 1980)

Topics

Sovereign & Public Wealth Funds · Increasing Non-Tax Government Revenue · Modernizing Government Accounting · Unlocking The Hidden Value of Government Assets