Luca Bertalot has been appointed secretary general of the European Mortgage Federation (EMF) and the European Covered Bond Council (ECBC), with incumbent Annik Lambert set to leave at the end of June.

Bertalot has hitherto been head of the ECBC, and has also been deputy secretary general of the European Mortgage Federation, having joined the EMF-ECBC in 2006. The ECBC was founded under the auspices of the EMF in 2004.

Lambert (pictured) has been secretary general of the EMF-ECBC since 2005. She joined the EMF in 1992 as head of legal affairs and was appointed deputy secretary general in 1995. She previously headed the legal department of a private company and worked as a barrister in Brussels.

“We are sorry to see Annik leave the EMF-ECBC after so many years, but we wish her every success in her future plans,” said EMF president Antonio José Béjar González and ECBC chairman Carsten Tirsbæk Madsen in a joint statement. “On behalf of all EMF and ECBC members, we thank Annik for what has been an outstanding contribution to the EU mortgage lending industry over many years, and especially over the turbulent period of the recent financial crisis and its aftermath.

“However, we are delighted to be able to announce Luca Bertalot as Annik’s successor. With Luca’s breadth of knowledge and experience of the industry, and keenness to take on this role, we are confident that he has the skills to drive the EMF-ECBC forward and face head-on the challenges of the new regulatory environment.”

Before joining the ECBC, Bertalot worked as a financial analyst in Italy and Australia.