Somia Azahaf appointed as Director of ACM’s Consumer Department

On 1 August 2026, Somia Azahaf will start her new role as Director of the Consumer Department at the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM). Ms. Azahaf will give strategic direction to a very dynamic department. ACM’s Consumer Department enforces compliance with the consumer protection rules in online and offline markets. In that effort, ACM’s mission is central: ensuring that markets work well for all people and businesses, now and in the future.

Together with her entire team in the Consumer Department, Ms. Azahaf will focus on reliable and accessible consumer information, as well as on effective oversight for the protection of consumers. Consumer Department officials are continuously in contact with the rest of society: they receive reports from individuals and businesses, provide them with information, and offer possible courses of action. In the Consumer Department’s oversight efforts, the focus will be on the sustainability transition, an honest and safe digital economy, as well as on strengthening the resilience of individuals and that of society as a whole. Ms. Azahaf and her department will also take action against any other unfair commercial practices about which many people file reports, yet which lie outside the abovementioned domains. These types of cases are often subject to European rules, which calls for effective cooperation with colleagues in other Member States as well as in Brussels.

Martijn Ridderbos, Member of the Board of ACM, explains: “I’m very much looking forward to working together with Somia. She brings so much to the table: broad regulatory knowledge as well as real-world experience. I’m absolutely convinced that, equipped with that expertise, she will greatly contribute to the fulfillment of our mission of ensuring that markets work well for everyone.”

Ms. Azahaf adds: “I’m so proud to take on my role as Director of ACM’s Consumer Department. In my experience at law firms, the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets, and at pension fund APG, I have seen how important it is to have sharp and effective oversight for well-functioning markets and for a strong position of consumers. That’s the experience I bring to ACM in order to make a difference, together with the entire team, in socially relevant discussions, especially in this time of digitalization and sustainability. I’m looking forward to conducting targeted oversight, together with highly-motivated professionals, as well as to working on visible and effective protection of consumers, while staying in contact with all relevant stakeholders.”

Since 2018, Ms. Azahaf has been the Chief Compliance Officer at Dutch pension fund APG Groep NV. Prior to that, she held various positions (including management positions) at, among other organizations, the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM), the Dutch Ministry of Finance, and law firm DLA Piper. Ms. Azahaf studied Dutch and European Law at Maastricht University and the University of Montpellier.

The appointment to this position was made through the general procedure for positions offered by the Dutch Senior Civil Service (DGABD). DGABD carried out the recruitment for this appointment, and it assisted ACM in the selection process. As is standard for these positions, the job posting was widely published, thereby allowing everyone to apply.