Nikos Papathanasiou is Vice President, Public Policy & Economic Research at Philip Morris International (PMI), based in Lausanne, Switzerland.
He is leading the global public policy & economic research function withing External Affairs, focusing on fiscal & regulatory policies that foster innovation and accelerate transformation to a smoke-free future, as well as economic research tools that support these policy directions. Nikos was appointed to his latest position in June 2021.
Nikos joined PMI in Greece in 2003, in the Finance Department and participated in the team that oversaw the acquisition of Papastratos SA (affiliate of Philip Morris International in Greece). Since then, he assumed roles of increased responsibility in Finance, Business Development & Planning and Corporate Affairs functions both in Greece (Cyprus & Malta) and in Switzerland (for the EU Region). Between 2008 and 2012, he served as the Fiscal & Regulatory Affairs Director for the EU Region, where he lead the policy engagements on the EU Tobacco Excise Directive and the EU Tobacco Products Directive.
Between 2012 and 2015, Nikos was appointed Director Corporate Affairs and Member of the Board of Directors of HM Sampoerna, PMI’s affiliate in Indonesia, which is among the top 10 companies listed in the Jakarta Stock Exchange. He oversaw the activities of the company in the areas of government relations, corporate and external communications, and sustainability.
Before joining PMI, Nikos held various positions in the financial advisory services (corporate finance) in companies of the Piraeus Bank Group (Greece).
Nikos studied Accounting & Finance at the University of Macedonia (Greece) and holds an MBA in International Banking and Finance from the University of Birmingham (UK).