Henriette Peucker is Chief Executive and Member of the Board. 

She represents the interest of its members in financing their investments in growth and innovation via a well-functioning capital market.

After studying at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris and obtaining a master's degree in European law, she worked in political consulting at ESL&Network in Paris and in investment banking at Schroders and Citigroup. From 2003 to 2010, she was responsible for Deutsche Börse Group's political work as Head of European Public Affairs. From 2010 to 2022, she built up the public affairs activities as well as the Berlin and Brussels offices at the strategic communications consultancy fgs global, from 2013 as a partner. In 2022/2023, she temporarily headed the Association of German Banks (Bundesverband deutscher Banken e.V.), most recently as Deputy Managing Director.

Running and skiing, cooking and reading, music and traveling as well as family and friends fill her free time.

Mr Aktieninstitut

As Deputy Managing Director, Rhinelander Franz-Josef Leven coordinates the work of Deutsches Aktieninstitut’s offices and represents the Chief Executive and Member of the Board.

After studying economics and receiving a doctorate from the University of Cologne, in 1989 he joined the predecessor organisation Arbeitskreis Aktie e.V. and has since shared ups and downs of the capital market at first hand.

Franz-Josef Leven lectures at Goethe-University Frankfurt’s University of the Third Age and the University of Liechtenstein.

In his free time, he is involved with charitable organisations Malteser Hilfsdienst and Lions.

The route to the dream job

Uta-Bettina von Altenbockum has been working with Deutsches Aktieninstitut since 2006.

The graduated lawyer followed a varied road: after a bank apprenticeship and studies followed by a period abroad in Sweden, with us she turned her hand to the European Company Statute and MiFID. In addition, she took charge of our Finanzplatz-Magazin publication. In 2012 she became Head of Press and Public Relations, later Head of Communication. 

Since 2023, she has also been Head of Sustainability Department - an increasingly important task that she has been fully focused on since 2025.

The mother of three adult children is an enthusiastic reader of crime novels and thrillers. For her, holidays are always associated with the sea, and she still has a suitcase in Berlin.

Travelled far for the adventure Brussels

Zelda Bank has been strengthening the team at the EU Liaison Office in Brussels since September 2022, having already completed an internship at our Frankfurt office in 2018. In the meantime, she studied political science at Swarthmore College and law in Boston, graduating with a Juris Doctor.

In Brussels, she keeps an eye on digital topics and developments in regulations concerning the capital markets, among other things.

Outside of work, the long-time hockey player enjoys baking and playing sports. On the weekend, she follows the matches of the German Bundesliga – preferably with a portion of Belgian fries.

Passion for people and numbers

When the topic at Deutsches Aktieninstitut is money, all roads lead to Claudia Brehm.

Having studied logistics, she joined our administrative staff in 2000. In 2003, she additionally took on the book-keeping function and discovered her flair for financial matters.

She has also been the mastermind behind Deutsches Aktieninstitut’s changes of premises since.

Moreover, Claudia Brehm is responsible for the organisation of our working group meetings.

Her passion is serving people. For her, the well-being of all guests and employees is a personal concern.

Committed lawyer and passionate sustainability expert

Jan Bremer does not mind relocation. Starting in Frankfurt in 2008, he was drawn to our EU liaison office in Brussels early on, which he has now successfully managed for many years. He got a taste of Berlin from 2015 to 2017, when he managed the office of the Regierungskommission on the German Corporate Governance Code as parental leave replacement. From 2020 to 2022, he was back in Frankfurt to head the Legal Department of Deutsches Aktieninstitut. 

In addition to legislative projects in the areas of company and capital market law and corporate governance, the lawyer is primarily concerned with European sustainability issues.

Jan Bremer studied law in Constance and Stellenbosch/South Africa. He prefers to spend his free time with art and culture in Brussels.

Early bird who catches the worm

As HR manager and assistant to Henriette Peucker, Alexandra Claas plays a central role at Deutsches Aktieninstitut.

The early riser ensures all-round support for the Executive Committee and the Board, takes care of members and is responsible for organising our major annual events. She is always approachable, even when things are literally burning.

After completing a commercial apprenticeship at Hoechst and holding positions at Celanese and SGL Carbon, she joined our team in 2014.
The Kelkheim resident finds relaxation in the gym, mountain biking or running in the nearby Taunus.
 

The Event Manager

Since August 2022, Kathrin Engel has been supporting the event management team at Deutsches Aktieninstitut. With her many years of experience in organizing conferences, she ensures that meetings, conferences, webinars and any other events are well prepared and run smoothly.

An industrial clerk by training, she was most recently head of event management at a university in Frankfurt am Main.

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends, playing tennis and hiking in the mountains.

Mother of the database

Elisenda Fàbrega came to us as events manager in 2013 – taking care of addresses was almost a sideline.

After the introduction of our CRM, Elisenda Fàbrega concentrated all her attention on database management in 2016.

The well organised Catalan who always has a smile on her face is happy to pass on her wide knowledge to new colleagues.

Regulation expert with a sense of humour

As Chief Economist, Gerrit Fey is the person for fundamental questions surrounding capital markets at Deutsches Aktieninstitut.

He analyses and comments on the influence of capital market regulation on the supply and demand of capital as well as the transparency and conduct obligations of listed companies and their management of interest rate, currency and commodity price risks.

His toolbox can be traced back to his studies and doctoral work at the University of Marburg with a focus on monetary, currency and institutional economics.

In his free time, Gerrit Fey most enjoys sitting on his gravel bike or putting on his hiking boots.

Event checker

Jovana Folkens has been organising our conferences and major events, planning them with specialist colleagues and drawing up checklists since 2016. 

She always produces a comprehensive no-worries package so that advisers and participants can concentrate on the matter in hand.

Jovana Folkens studied business administration in Mannheim with a focus on trade fair, congress and event management.

Once everything on the checklist has been ticked, she regularly plays volleyball or cooks with great passion for friends and family.

Likes Europe and the Taunus

Carl Philipp Gierlich has been reinforcing the Frankfurt team since January 2024. As Policy Advisor Capital Markets, the political science graduate is responsible for various topics, including digitization. Additionally, he provides substantive and organizational support to the management of the institute.

During his trinational European Master's program, he studied in France and Germany. He gained initial professional experience on the Brussels stage within chemistry and pharmaceutical associations.

In his free time, you can find the father of twins indulging in enduro biking in the Hochtaunus region or enjoying a good book accompanied by a Belgian Trappist beer.

Brings clarity to complex topics

Jessica Göres has been contributing to the capital market policy debate for Deutsches Aktieninstitut since 2019. As Head of Sustainability Reporting, she is particularly keen to advocate for practical and efficient sustainability reporting requirements.

She feels at home in the maze of different ESG regulations. One of her strengths is the clear and precise communication of content on topics such as the CSRD, ESRS and ISSB. In doing so, she also focusses particularly on the views of companies in the real economy.

Following her studies in politics and economics in St. Gallen, Jessica Göres first worked in Brussels before coming to Frankfurt. She particularly values the international atmosphere of Germany’s metropolis on the Main, an aspect which manifests itself in many different ways.

So that our message gets through

Mariya Grozdanova has been working at Deutsches Aktieninstitut since 2020. She supports the team with database management and ensures that we always reach our discussion partners with job title and address.

Mariya Grozdanova completed her business management studies at Saarland University. She then worked as an assistant in the area of HR consulting for ten years before diving into database management with us.

Whether taking a breath of fresh air in the countryside, baking with her daughter or enjoying a good book together – she always loves to spend her free time with her family.

Good governance is her thing

Cordula Heldt has been responsible for corporate governance and company law with us since 2005. In addition, she heads activities relating to Regierungskommission Deutscher Corporate Governance Kodex – the government commission on the code for which we provide the secretariat.

She studied law in Frankfurt and Milan. She became familiar with the Federal Constitutional Court during her legal internship. With her doctoral thesis, she laid the foundations for the legal theory work which is indispensable for activities in a think tank.

Her practical experiences, for example as a member of supervisory boards, have complemented her professional know-how.

Outside the office she is an artist.

The thoroughbred lawyer

Sven Erwin Hemeling can deploy his passion for law and capital markets to the full in his work as head of primary market law with Deutsches Aktieninstitut, in conjunction with our member companies.

The lawyer, working with us since 2016, deals first and foremost with prospectus law, virtual general assemblies, the shareholder rights directive and similar capital market themes.

He had previously passed both legal examinations at the University of Tübingen with a focus on corporate organisation and finance.

The friendly voice of Deutsches Aktieninstitut

As the guardian of reception, Ilona Hix has been the face and voice of Deutsches Aktieninstitut since 1999.

As assistant to Franz-Josef Leven, she deals with management of the Deputy Managing Director’s appointments, prepares the organisational aspect of speeches and ensures good order in documents and at the workplace.

Each morning anew, Ilona Hix enjoys supporting our team wherever things are getting hot.

In private, she loves table football and other games with friends.

The strategist

Birgit Homburger follows for us political developments in Berlin. After graduating with a diploma in administrative sciences from the University of Constance, she started her professional career in the SME sector.

In 1990 she was elected to the German Bundestag, of which she was  member until 2013. In this period, she held a series of leadership positions, inter alia as chair of the FDP political group from 2009 to 2011.

She was then active as associate partner at an international HR consultancy before taking over as our Head of Berlin Office. Since 2025, she has also been Head of Politics and Communication.

In her free time, she finds pleasure in her garden and orchard, and enjoys making trips through the dreamlike landscape of the Hegau region.

Loves good solutions

As head of IT and digital, Petra Kachel is responsible for Deutsches Aktieninstitut’s IT infrastructure.

With her passion for solving problems, the trained economist quickly got a handle not only on substantive but also on technical tasks after she arrived at Deutsches Aktieninstitut in 1998.

As special advisor to a member of the Bundestag, she had previously learnt about the political side of shares and the capital market.

A native of Frankfurt, she likes to spend her free time with family and friends, and enjoys being on a climbing wall or bicycle.

The Midfielder

Felix Klein has been keeping all of our systems running and has been our colleagues’ first point of contact for all technical questions since March 2023.

After completing his training as an IT specialist for system integration, Felix Klein worked for an IT systems company including in the field service for seven and a half years. As a result, he is just as familiar with the cloud world as he is with all on site IT topics.

His great passion is soccer, where he used to be a midfielder on the left wing. When he is not watching soccer, he likes to spend his free time hiking.

Researcher for shares

Norbert Kuhn is responsible for the Think Tank division. He is responsible for all legal and economic issues.

His broad field of research at the Aktieninstitut has predestined him for this task - from shares in pension schemes to employee share ownership and the tax framework. The economist and political scientist is also interested in the regulation of risk management and corporate payment transactions.

Norbert Kuhn studied in Marburg, obtained his doctorate and has been working at Deutsches Aktieninstitut since 2006 - since 2025 as Head of Think Tank, previously as Head of Corporate Finance.

In his free time, he likes to be outdoors on a bicycle saddle, on water or on foot.
 

Loves creative communication and togetherness

Stella Muthorst has been supporting the press team at Deutsches Aktieninstitut since 2024.

After studying online journalism and biology in Darmstadt, she initially worked in science and medical communications.

When she is not working, she loves spending time with her friends and family or exploring nature.

Interpreter in Berlin’s political tumult

As Public Affairs Manager to our Berlin office, Renz Peter Ringsleben organises a close dialogue between business and policy-makers.

He has collected public affairs experiences working on behalf of the Federal Ministry for family affairs and as press spokesman for young entrepreneurs’ association Die Jungen Unternehmer.

Renz Peter Ringsleben studied political communication at the University of Amsterdam and economics and philosophy at the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management.

In his free time he plays on the wing for Berlin’s Freizeitfußball club and enjoys both theatre and the region’s lake landscape.

Creative capital market lawyer

Having been concerned with our capital market law issues since 2002, Claudia Royé has been Head of Legal since 2025. She not only contributes her experience and knowledge to the legislative processes, she is also an important pillar of the secretariat of the Regierungskommission Deutscher Corporate Governance Kodex.

A particular hobbyhorse of the doctor of law is the design and management of events and working groups. Here she helps to develop new formats.

Claudia Royé studied in Mainz and London and completed her legal clerkship in Frankfurt.

She relaxes from her varied work by walking the dog, riding her horse and doing yoga.

Deep diving and distance running

Klaus-Dieter Sohn has been our Chief Legal Counsel and Head of Organisation since 2025. Before joining Aktieninstitut as Head of  Legal Department in May 2022, he worked for seven years as Head of Economic Policy at the Foundation for Family Businesses and Politics in Berlin.

Before moving into the political arena, the fully qualified lawyer initially worked for the German Army for twelve years in various staff functions. He then helped to establish the Center for European Policy in Freiburg.

Klaus-Dieter Sohn always enjoys returning to the Kaiserstuhl with its excellent cuisine. His sporting passions include long runs as well as diving in faraway waters.

A passion for political discussions

Christiane Thieme has been strengthening Deutsches Aktieninstitut's Berlin team since March 2025. With her many years of experience as office manager in the office of a member of the German Bundestag, she is well prepared for all eventualities.

She enjoys communicating, is highly flexible and, of course, passionate about politics. Even after many years, she still enjoys dealing with political issues on a daily basis. Communication plays a central role for her – both within the team and externally.

In her free time, she likes travelling and singing in a gospel choir.

The Allrounder

Robert Wainer has been joining the Frankfurt team of Deutsches Aktieninstitut in June 2023.  

As a policy advisor in the Legal Department, he is typically found in the legal wing of the institute. However, as an allrounder, he also tackles cross-disciplinary topics.

The Frankfurt native completed his bachelor's degree in business law and his master's degree in negotiating and drafting contracts at Frankfurt UAS.

In his spare time, Robert Wainer is an active soccer player, where he is said to be a force to be reckoned with in the attack, but also has the ability to adapt to other positions.