Markus Vaerst appointed new CEO of Wascosa

The Board of Directors of the Wascosa Group has announced the appointment of Markus Vaerst as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He will assume leadership of the Europe wide freight wagon leasing company effective April 30th, 2025.

Markus Vaerst (62) succeeds Iris Hilb, who has led the company since January 2023 and is stepping down for personal reasons.

Markus Vaerst has more than 35 years of experience in the rail logistics and freight wagon industry. Vaerst joined Wascosa in 2019, initially strengthening the management team as Chief Operating Officer (COO). Since the end of 2022, he has been driving the company's digital transformation as Chief Digital & Quality
Officer.

The change in leadership therefore stands for continuity on the one hand and underlines the strategic importance of digitalisation, innovation and sustainability for Wascosa on the other.

Philipp Müller, Chairman of the Board of Wascosa Group Holding S.à r.l., commented: “We are delighted to appoint Markus Vaerst – a proven expert in the rail freight industry – as our new CEO. With his decades of experience and his track record in advancing digitalisation and quality, he is exceptionally well qualified
to lead Wascosa into the future. His appointment ensures we stay firmly on course with our customerdriven strategy while further strengthening our innovation and service leadership across Europe.”

Markus Vaerst added: “It is both an honour and a great responsibility to be entrusted with the role of CEO at Wascosa. I look forward to continuing our journey together with our dedicated team.”

Volker Häussermann (Swiss Life Asset Managers) and Christoph Bruguier (Vauban Infrastructure Partners) would like to thank Iris Hilb: "Iris Hilb, CEO of Wascosa, has decided to embark on a new chapter in her professional life. We respect
this decision and thank her for her strong commitment and all the contributions to Wascosa. Over the past few years, Iris Hilb has taken important steps to advance the integration of Wascosa and Aves One into the Wascosa Group, which has developed into a strong European platform for freight car rental. Iris Hilb has launched a digital roadmap towards operational excellence and promoted various other important projects for Wascosa such as Wascosa’s award winning flex freight system as well as the radio-controlled ballast wagon developed by Wascosa in collaboration with its clients, thus creating customer value. We would like to wish Iris Hilb all the best for her future.»

Iris Hilb concluded: «It has been a pleasure to drive our business forward together with this wonderful team at Wascosa. These almost three years at Wascosa have shown me that Wascosa is a very strong player in our market and is constantly evolving. Strong customer and service orientation, innovative spirit and flexibility are
Wascosa's DNA and will certainly support continued growth. I would like to thank Philipp Müller and the shareholders for their support.”