This week's episode of the New In Chess podcast features an interview with Icelandic grandmaster Margeir Petursson.

Margeir first became a national celebrity in Iceland as a chess player. He won the Icelandic championship twice, in 1986 and 1987, and had further successes at home and abroad, winning classics such as the Hastings Premier in 1986 and dozens of strong Opens around the world. He was also a member of the legendary Icelandic national team that finished 5th at the Dubai Olympiad in 1986 and 6th at the Manila Olympiad in 1992. The ‘Golden Team’ that he played on together with Johann Hjartarson, Helgi Olafsson and Jon Arnason.

While many still saw him first and foremost as a chess player, Margeir also embarked on a banking career and founded his own bank, MP Bank (indeed, Margeir Petursson bank!). He became internationally known as the owner of the only Icelandic bank that did not collapse in the big Icelandic banking crisis in 2008. 

Those turbulent days were far from the last time that he had to operate in chaos and crisis. In the following years, Margeir switched his activities to Ukraine where he acquired Bank Lviv, and faced entirely new challenges, particularly when the country was invaded by Russia and became a nation at war.  

Enjoy this week's episode of the New In Chess Podcast!

0:00 – Intro

2:14 – Margeir’s memory of Reykjavik 1972 

9:06 – How Margeir developed his passion for chess

21:46 – AD BREAK

23:27 – Margeir’s decision to pursue chess while working as a banker

28:30 – How did Margeir work on his chess?

35:04 – Why Fischer “pushed” Margeir out of chess

38:50 – Margeir’s banking career 

42:40 – How Margeir ended up in Ukraine

49:55 – AD BREAK

50:54 – Did Margeir’s skill in chess translate to his banking career?

1:05:37 – Outro