Romain Ciarlet succeeds Olivier Wenden at the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation

With the appointment of Olivier Wenden to the Prince’s Palace, a new director is taking over at the Prince Albert II Foundation.

Olivier Wenden will leave his position as Vice-President and Managing Director of the Prince Albert II Foundation on 2 March to join the Prince’s Palace. The Monégasque, a graduate of Sciences Po Bordeaux and the Sorbonne, will take over as Head of the Sovereign Prince’s Cabinet, succeeding Christophe Steiner, who has been in the post since September 2023.

Romain Ciarlet, currently Executive Director and Secretary General since December 2019, will succeed him as Vice-President. With a Master’s degree from IPAG Business School and a Specialised Master’s degree from SKEMA Business School, he has a background combining international finance and diplomatic relations.

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Before joining Monaco, Romain Ciarlet pursued a diplomatic career in Germany and Russia, where he led economic, cultural and scientific cooperation projects. He has also held positions at leading banking institutions, including HSBC, Quintet Private Bank and Edmond de Rothschild, as well as with the Monegasque government.

An architect of blue finance

Within the Foundation, Romain Ciarlet has established himself as the main architect of initiatives related to the blue economy. He orchestrated the launch of the ReOcean Fund, a €100 million impact investment vehicle dedicated to ocean conservation and the sustainable exploitation of marine resources.

He also created the Ocean Innovators Platform, designed to accelerate the emergence of innovative solutions, and co-developed the Blue Economy Index. His commitment to passing on knowledge led him to launch the Re.Generation Future Leaders programme, which trains a new generation of talent dedicated to the environmental cause.

This handover comes as the Prince Albert II Foundation celebrates its twentieth anniversary in 2026, marking a new stage in its history while ensuring the sustainability of its work for global health.