Boujnah to Step Down at Euronext in May 2027, With Knibbe Nominated to Succeed Him

Euronext said on Monday that Stéphane Boujnah will step down as chief executive in May 2027, ending a tenure that began in 2015 and reshaped the exchange group.

The supervisory board intends to nominate David Knibbe as chief executive and chairman of the managing board. Knibbe leads NN Group, the Dutch insurer, and has held that job since 2019. Shareholders will vote on the appointment at the annual general meeting on May 20, 2027.

An orderly handover with three sets of approvals

This is a planned exit, announced more than six months before it takes effect. Boujnah decided to step down, and the board ran what it called a thorough selection process. The nomination committee recommended Knibbe after the board weighed several candidates against its strategic priorities.

The appointment still needs approval from the relevant national competent authorities, the regulators overseeing Euronext's national exchanges. It also needs approval from the Dutch finance minister. Shareholders then vote at the May 2027 meeting.

Supervisory board chairman Piero Novelli framed the pick as a bet on integration skills. "Following a thorough and diligent process, we are pleased to announce the selection of David Knibbe as the next CEO of Euronext," he said. Euronext said Knibbe will be based in Paris and will drive its strategic roadmap.

An outsider over the expected insider

Knibbe has spent almost thirty years at NN Group and its predecessor organizations. He joined the NN management board more than a decade ago and became chief executive in 2019. Euronext pointed to his record running a highly regulated business. It also cited his integrations and technology transformations at the insurer.

The choice still wrong-footed some expectations. Reuters reported that a trader called the appointment a surprise. Many had expected Giorgio Modica, Euronext's long-serving finance chief, to succeed Boujnah, the trader noted. Knibbe instead arrives from insurance, a different regulated industry.

What Boujnah built since 2015

Boujnah joined in 2015, shortly after Euronext was spun out of Intercontinental Exchange's takeover of the New York Stock Exchange owner. He led the acquisition of four national stock exchanges during his tenure. The most recent expansion brought a majority stake in the Athens Stock Exchange in November 2025.

The group now runs regulated exchanges in eight European countries. As of September 2026 they hosted more than one thousand eight hundred listed issuers, with seven trillion euros in combined market capitalization. Euronext says it handles 29% of European lit equity trading, meaning trades matched on visible public order books.

Boujnah also argued publicly that Europe's capital markets stay too fragmented. Reuters reported he backed a single European stock exchange and urged policymakers to unlock European savings. The mandate Knibbe inherits is the integration agenda behind that argument.

A second handover at NN Group

Knibbe steps down from NN Group on March 1, 2027. Tjeerd Bosklopper becomes chief executive designate that day, filling the vacant executive board seat. He takes the job in full after notification to NN's annual general meeting on May 12, 2027.

Bosklopper is an internal pick. He currently leads NN's Dutch non-life insurance, banking and technology businesses. He joined the management board in September 2018. The Dutch central bank has already approved his appointment.

Knibbe marked his exit in personal terms. "After almost 30 years with NN and its predecessor organisations, this is a special moment for me," he said. NN said the succession process for Bosklopper's current role has started, with no successor named yet.

What remains unknown

What remains unknown starts with the approvals themselves. Regulators in several countries and the Dutch finance minister must still clear Knibbe's appointment. Neither company said what Boujnah plans to do next. Euronext also declined to comment beyond its statement. It cited a quiet period before its third-quarter results.

The votes and clearances that settle the succession

What to watch begins with NN Group's annual meeting documents, due from March 30, 2027. NN shareholders meet on May 12, 2027, when Bosklopper's appointment takes effect. Euronext shareholders vote eight days later, on May 20. Regulatory and ministerial approvals must land before that vote counts.