COPENHAGEN: Lego abruptly removed its chief executive Bali Padda after just eight months on Thursday, replacing the 61-year-old Briton with a younger Danish industrialist in a battle to become the world’s biggest toymaker.
The Danish company said it had appointed Niels B. Christiansen, 51, who joins Lego after nine years as CEO of Danfoss where by focusing on digitalization he increased sales and turned the firm into a global leader in energy efficiency.
Lego is hoping Christiansen can revive its flagging growth by increasing sales in Asia and fully embracing the digital era.
After flirting with bankruptcy after 2000, Lego saw a decade of impressive growth under the leadership of Jorgen Vig Knudstorp, who is now chairman of the family-owned maker of the distinctive plastic building bricks which have been enjoyed by generations of children.
When the toy market shrank after the financial crisis, Lego bucked the trend by tying up with movie franchises like Star Wars, Harry Potter and Indiana Jones in deals spanning Lego sets, video games, movie franchises and smartphone applications.
But while Lego now vies with Barbie doll maker Mattel to be the world’s largest maker of toys, revenue growth slowed from 25 percent in 2015 to just six percent last year with sales of 37.9 billion Danish crowns ($6 billion).
Enter Padda, a Lego veteran and the first non-Dane to lead the firm, who took over from Knudstorp, a Danish national who had overseen average annual sales increases of more than 15 percent and made Lego the world’s most profitable toymaker.
Founded in 1932 by Ole Kirk Kristiansen, his grandson Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen is now the main family representative at Lego.
Before Danfoss, Padda’s replacement Christiansen was head of hearing aid firm GN Store Nord. He has also been on the board of A.P. Moller-Maersk, Danske Bank and Bang & Olufsen.
“Niels managed to transform a traditional industrial company into a technology leader,” Knudstorp told Reuters, adding that his experience in digitalization and localization will help improve products and efficiency at Lego.
Padda will now take on a special advisory role within the Lego Brand Group, which is headed by Knudstorp.
Knudstorp says he started looking for a younger successor to Padda, who is the oldest person on the Lego management team, immediately after his appointment, but admitted that the transition had come faster than expected.
“It can take a long time to find the right one, but when Niels stepped down at Danfoss, I faced one of the country’s absolute best persons to lead a big global company. I suddenly saw a chance to shorten the process,” Knudstorp said.
“It could easily have taken two to three years,” he said, adding that while it was not essential to have a Dane leading Lego, it was important to understand its roots.
“(Christiansen) has a solid rooting in Danish values, where you have authority because you’re a competent, credible and authentic leader, not because you’re the boss who sits at the end of the table and smokes big cigars,” Knudstorp said.
And as far as the chairman is concerned, Lego’s new boss already has the building blocks he needs to revive growth.
“We still have a very strong brand even though growth rates declined last year,” Knudstorp said. “At Lego, we make significantly more money than our closest competitors combined.”
Toymaker Lego returns to Danish roots with sudden CEO switch
Toymaker Lego returns to Danish roots with sudden CEO switch
Gulf emerging as beneficiary amid changing global alliances, says TCW executive
DAVOS: As artificial intelligence dominated discussions at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos, asset managers are exploring how the technology can be deployed at scale without losing the human judgement that underpins investment decisions.
For Jennifer Grancio, global head of distribution at asset management firm TCW, Saudi Arabia’s approach to energy and AI makes it a particularly attractive hub for investors.
“Saudi Arabia has been very forward-leaning in traditional energy,” Grancio said.
“They’ve also invested heavily in grid efficiency and electricity, which positions them to serve the wider region. Combined with AI adoption, it makes them a powerhouse for investment opportunities.”
For TCW, the focus is not on replacing human expertise but on expanding capacity.
“We’re using AI to increase capacity, not to replace investment analysts or people who write commentaries or evaluate securities,” Grancio explained.
The firm continues to rely on deep research, deploying AI selectively across functions such as securitized credit, marketing and investment teams.
TCW’s engagement with AI predates the current wave of enthusiasm and adoption.
“We were actually an early AI investor. In the US, we have the oldest AI fund, launched over eight years ago, focused on both enablers and adopters,” Grancio said.
The dual focus on technology and infrastructure increasingly aligns with developments in the Gulf.
“As an investment manager, we look at both the AI systems being developed and how energy and power infrastructure supports them,” she said, highlighting TCW’s global energy and power strategy, which has consistently outperformed its benchmark.
Geopolitical shifts are also reshaping investment flows to the Gulf.
“Concerns around the US, China or Russia have led global investors to rely more on the Gulf,” Grancio said. “It’s a great time for development and trade there.”
Emerging markets are drawing growing attention from investors.
“In the US, there’s a rotation toward global exposure. Elsewhere, there’s renewed focus on emerging markets and managing through volatility,” she said.
TCW has benefited from this trend, particularly in emerging market debt, with sovereign clients increasing allocations by billions of dollars.
Volatility, Grancio added, can create opportunity. “As a value manager, we do deep research and focus on relative valuation. In fixed income and securitized credit, volatility allows us to increase returns for clients.”
In the Middle East, sovereign wealth funds and pension systems are expanding into private credit and alternative income strategies. Education is key, Grancio said.
“Understanding what’s different about private investments is critical. They offer strong compounding and portfolio diversification.”
Private asset-backed finance is a growing trend in the region. “We’re seeing portfolios shift from public fixed income into private securitized credit, a major growth area.”
Looking ahead to 2026, Grancio said that shifts will vary by region and investor type. “In the US, the wealth market has moved toward ETFs. We’ve rapidly built out a $6 billion ETF platform to meet demand,” she said.
