A round up of the latest senior appointments news;
GENERALI
Effective August 1st, Generali Global Corporate & Commercial (GC&C) has appointed Brendan McDonald as Head of Underwriting for Asia, directly reporting to the Head of GC&C Asia, Axel Roesner. Based in the Hong Kong, Generali’s regional headquarters,Brendan is responsible for driving growth and underwriting excellence across Asia.
Commenting on the appointment, Axel Roesner, Head GC&C Asia said, “We are delighted to announce the promotion appointment of Brendan as Head of Underwriting for our segment in Asia, and to see how we have been able to leverage on our strong talent pool. This appointment reflects our dedication to further accelerate profitable growth in the Asian market and to provide high-quality underwriting expertise to clients and brokers. I am sure that Brendan will strongly contribute to the execution of our strategy and daily efforts in being our customers’ lifetime partner by adding value beyond the policy and helping their business succeed.”
MERCER
Mercer has announced the appointment of William Gibbons as Principal in its Insurance Investment Solutions business. In his new role, Mr Gibbons will provide strategic investment advice to global insurance clients, as they seek to navigate the challenges of the current low-yield environment. He will also be responsible for developing efficient and innovative investment solutions for insurers. Based in London, Mr Gibbons will report to Colin Tipping, Mercer’s Head of Insurance Investment Solutions.
Mr Gibbons joins from PwC where he advised insurers and other financial institutions on strategic asset allocation, investments, asset restructuring, liquidity, market risk and hedging. Prior to that, he was a Director at Barclays Investment Bank, focusing on solutions for UK insurers. Earlier in his career, Mr Gibbons worked in asset and liability management for European financial insurance institutions at Morgan Stanley.
Mr Gibbons said, “Mercer’s Insurance Investment Solutions business is dedicated to helping clients diversify their portfolios, increase efficiency and focus on responsible investing. It’s a great time to join the team, I look forward to working with its industry leading experts to support clients through uncertain times and towards achieving their investment goals.”
AVID INSURANCE
Senior Insurance executive Mark Cliff has been appointed chairman of Avid Insurance Services Ltd [Avid]. Cliff takes up his role, which has been approved by the FCA, with immediate effect.
Avid, an MGA which is majority owned by Beech Tree Private Equity, specialises in social housing, council leasehold markets and travel.
Avid founder and MD Stephen Gibson, said: ‘I am extremely pleased to welcome Mark as Avid Chairman. His wide-ranging experience will be an invaluable asset to Avid as we move forward with our exciting plans for growth in our existing markets and in new sectors and products.
“Mark will help steer our strategy and assist our business development, including inorganic growth, where we have made no secret of our desire to acquire businesses and specialist underwriting teams, where they make strategic sense.”
FCA
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Bank of England have today announced the appointment of Amerdeep Somal as Complaints Commissioner.
The Commissioner oversees the final stage of investigations into complaints against the FCA, PRA and the Bank. The role is independent from the three organisations.
Amerdeep will replace current Commissioner Antony Townsend on 1 November and will serve an initial term of three years.
Christopher Woolard, Interim Chief Executive of the FCA, said:
‘Independent scrutiny is vital to the transparency and standards of the UK regulatory system.
‘We are pleased to see Amerdeep appointed to the role of Complaints Commissioner and we look forward to working with her.
‘We would also like to thank Antony Townsend for his dedication and commitment over the last six years.’
PEN UNDERWRITING
Pen Underwriting announces that Matthew Lucas has been appointed to the role of Chief Operating Officer and will join the £600m GWP underwriting business on 01 September 2020. Matthew will also be joining the Board of Pen Underwriting Limited, subject to regulatory approval.
At present, Matthew is COO of Gallagher Benefit Services UK (GBS UK) – the specialist employee benefit, wealth management, communications and HR consultancy arm of Gallagher, Pen Underwriting’s parent company. Prior to joining the company, Matthew held a number of senior roles at Brown Shipley Private Bank, Barclays Wealth and Capita SIP Services, where he led large-scale transformation initiatives and operations teams.
As Chief Operating Officer, Matthew will be responsible for ensuring Pen has the operational capabilities, flexibility and scalability to deliver on its strategic business vision and accelerated growth ambitions of becoming a £1bn GWP underwriting and distribution business. On 01 September he will begin a month-long handover with current COO Michelle Bree to ensure a smooth transition of operational leadership.
ZURICH
Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) has appointed Sierra Signorelli to an expanded role as Group Chief Underwriting Officer, while Group Claims, led by Ian Thompson, will move to Commercial Insurance. Both Ms. Signorelli and Mr. Thompson will report to James Shea, CEO of Commercial Insurance. These changes are effective as of October 1.
Ms. Signorelli, who is currently Chief Underwriting Officer for Commercial Insurance, will in her new role oversee the underwriting function across the Group. By bringing underwriting under one leader and structure Zurich will sharpen its underwriting focus and continue to improve capabilities across the organization. Ms. Signorelli will continue focusing on solidifying the underwriting culture by balancing experience, local and technical knowledge with investment in data, ensuring underwriters are well-positioned to make the appropriate risk selection decisions.
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