The board of directors of Sappi Ltd., Johannesburg, South Africa, this week announced that Steve Binnie, currently CFO of the company, will succeed Ralph Boëttger as CEO, effective July 1. Boëttger announced last month that he will relinquish his position as CEO and director on June 30. Boëttger, who has been with Sappi as CEO for almost seven years, has been diagnosed with a serious illness and decided to step down.

 

Binnie joined Sappi on July 9, 2012, as CFO-designate and became CFO and joined the Sappi board on Sept. 1, 2012. Prior to joining Sappi, he had been the CFO of Edcon (Pty) Ltd. since 2002. Prior to joining Edcon, he was group financial manager at Investec Bank Ltd. and held senior management positions at Transunion ITC and New Zealand Milk Products (SA). He is a chartered account and holds an MBA from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, Scotland.

 

Dr. Danie Cronje, chairman of the board of Sappi, said that "I would like to congratulate Steve on his appointment. The board believes that Steve has all of the necessary skills and attributes to take Sappi forward and to deliver strong growth into the future. It is anticipated that a successor for the role of CFO will be announced before the end of June 2014."