Valdimar Hjartarson

I am a lawyer (ML, LL.M.) working on project management as Senior Officer for Financial Services and Company Law at the EFTA Secretariat in Brussels.

For the past decade EU / EEA financial services and company law has been my main area of focus, including through compliance enforcement, national and EEA implementation, along with policy and legal analyses. 

This has provided me with broad experience and an excellent overview of all major EU / EEA financial services legislation and policy in a cross-sectoral capacity.

While I am contracted with EFTA until August 2023, I am interested in pursuing future roles in compliance, regulatory risk management, internal governance and/or in the field of competition law.

What interests me professionally is working in a demanding and compelling workplace in a multi-national environment, where my experience, education and characteristics can be of good use. On a more personal note, I am very happily married, have two kids, and a white shepherd named Jaki. Main hobbies include woodworking, cycling and weightlifting.

Specialised in EU Business Law, I am a lawyer working as project manager for Financial Services and Company Law for EFTA in relation to the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA) for access to the EU’s Single Market.

For the past 6 years at the EFTA Secretariat in Brussels my job has been to identify, monitor and advise my stakeholders, the EEA EFTA States (Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein) on regulatory developments in financial services, from conception at the European Commission until adoption by the EU co-legislators, at which time I coordinate teams for the incorporation of this legislation into the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement). I have therefore gained an excellent overview of all current and upcoming legislation in the field of EU financial services.

While I gained experience leading teams of experts with diverse backgrounds during my time at the Icelandic Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA), this skill has been significantly enhanced during my time at EFTA where I have not only led, but also built, highly efficient teams of financial services experts operating in three different countries with excellent results. In order for the teams to reach their goals I am responsible for the identification of legal challenges, assessment of their effect and advising on mitigation, either through a changed approach or negotiations on amendments to the Agreement. Seeing that the EEA Agreement is a 30-year-old international agreement between the 27 EU member states and the EEA EFTA States this has equally become more challenging and interesting in the current regulatory environment.

In order for me to provide my stakeholders with services of the highest quality I have managed to build solid strategic relationships not only with my teams and their individual national delegations but also external stakeholders such as my counterparts at the EU Commission, the EU Council, and financial services associations in the EFTA States. I am certain this experience will be useful in building strategic relationships with LC&I business stakeholders.

Having worked for an international organisation, often with politically sensitive matters, I am mindful of how important it is for any major business or organisation that everyone involved has a thorough understanding of the applicable policies and processes. Furthermore, since the aspect of organisational processes was a key element in the course I recently finished on Management Essentials at Harvard Business School online I believe I am well suited to maintain and expand awareness in these matters.

Due to my experience in law- and compliance enforcement, both at the FSA and the Police before that, I have the mindset required to actively address non-compliance in different situations. I furthermore have the education, experience, and overview necessary to comprehend the various aspects that can arise and require consideration in such cases, coupled with the interpersonal competence to address the situation in an efficient manner.

While I hope my CV and this cover letter give you a good idea about my qualifications, I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

I have a BA and Master's degree in Law from the University of Iceland and an LL.M degree in European Business Law from Lund University in Sweden. Furthermore I finished a course on Management Essentials at Harvard Business School Online.