YILPORT HOLDING APPOINTS BORIS WENZEL AS CO-CEO
Global ports and container terminals operator Yilport Holding is pleased to announce the appointment of Boris Wenzel as its co-CEO (co-Chief Executive Officer) and Chief Strategy & Investment Officer, effective on 1 September 2022.
Boris Wenzel brings with him a wealth of experience of more than 20 years in the port industry as chief executive where he held senior leadership roles in Europe and Asia, and over 25 years of international experience at Board level.
Born in Paris, France in 1968, he received his bachelor’s and master’s degree in Corporate Finance at SKEMA Business School in France. After initial experiences in New York and London, he worked as a junior banker in Asia and managed the restructuring of several companies in various industries until 1999.
In 1999, he was hired by a US private equity fund for his first role in the ports industry, working at Eastern Sea Laem Chabang Terminal Co. Ltd. (ESCO) as President and COO. After assisting the fund to sell its stake in ESCO to PSA International in 2003, he joined PSA International to support the Group CEO in turning around troubled investments and expanding the international portfolio, holding various postings in Europe and Asia.
In 2008, he was hired by Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets to turn around their investment in DCT Gdansk SA, Poland where he served as CEO until 2013 positioning it to become a major hub and gateway port. He was subsequently recruited by JP Morgan to join Noatum Group in Spain as COO, overseeing their terminals portfolio until 2016. While at Noatum, he was also elected as President of ANESCO, the national port operator and freight forwarder association of Spain.
Mr. Wenzel’s last post before joining Yilport was at CMA CGM as Managing Director of Terminal Link SAS (a JV between CMA CGM and China Merchant Ports) between 2016 and 2021; during his tenure the portfolio of Terminal Link SAS grew from 12 to 21 terminals worldwide.
During his time at Terminal Link SAS, he founded TIC4.0 in 2018, an international industry association dedicated to the elaboration of technical and digital standards for the port industry regrouping over 35 leading companies in the terminal industry sector, including Yilport Holding, where he continues to hold the title of President.
Since 2021, he has been working as a Senior Advisor for leading private equity and infrastructure funds and successfully assisted them in securing large minority stakes in two European ports. He currently holds a non-executive director/Vice-Chairman position representing a leading infrastructure fund in an investment in Europe.
Mr. Wenzel will be co-leading Yilport with Chairman & CEO Robert Yuksel Yildirim, in addition to navigating strategy and overseeing investments, expanding the company’s global footprint and high service quality. Mr. Wenzel speaks French, English, German and Spanish fluently.
“I am very honored and excited to join Yilport Holding to support Mr. Robert Yildirim in his vision to make it one of the top 10 global container terminal operators in the next couple of years. Yilport has a great team that I look forward to joining and a strong potential to grow internationally. It is a unique challenge and opportunity that I could not miss.” Boris Wenzel said about his new position.
Robert Yuksel Yildirim, Chairman and CEO of Yilport Holding also made the following remarks:
“I would like to welcome Mr. Boris Wenzel to the Yilport team. Mr. Wenzel will play a key role in helping our company to reach our goal to rank among the top 10 international container terminal operators. We are confident that Mr. Wenzel’s vision and strategic leadership as the co-CEO and Chief Strategy & Investment Officer will boost efficiency and deliver excellent productivity, while increasing our global portfolio of terminals. We are looking forward to grow and expand our brand during Mr. Wenzel’s tenure at Yilport terminals.”