Global Federation of Insurance Associations elects executive committee
Following its general assembly, the Global Federation of Insurance Associations (GFIA) has announced the election of its executive committee (ExCo).
This includes:
- Governor Dirk Kempthorne, President and CEO of the American Council of Life Insurers, as President;
- Mr Recaredo Arias, Director General of the Association of Mexican Insurance Companies, as Vice-President;
- Ms Michaela Koller, Director General of Insurance Europe, as Secretary General;
- Mr Frank Swedlove, President of the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, as past president; and
- Mr Robert Whelan, Executive Director and CEO of the Insurance Council of Australia, as membership executive.
New additions to the ExCo include Mr Bachir Baddou, General Manager of the Moroccan Insurance Association, who was elected as a regional representative on the executive committee, and Mr Toyonari Sasaki, Vice Chairman of the Life Insurance Association of Japan, who was elected as GFIA’s Treasurer.
GFIA has also announced that the Turkish Insurance Association has become a member.
ICMIF welcomes new Chair
The International Cooperative and Mutual Insurance Federation (ICMIF) has appointed Ms Hilde Vernaillen, Chair of the Management Committee, P&V Group (Belgium) as the Federation’s new Chair for a four-year term.
Ms Vernaillen has been working in the financial services industry for more than 20 years and is a committed defender of the mutual/cooperative business model in insurance.
She was appointed as CEO of P&V Insurance and VIVIUM in 2011 after 20 years in the P&V Group, first in the bank and later on in the insurance companies.
Ms Vernaillen is a member of the ICMIF Board and was President of the Association of Mutual Insurers and Insurance Cooperatives in Europe (AMICE) from June 2013 until June 2016. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Euresa Holding, an European Economic Interest Group for cooperation and collaboration among the European insurance companies belonging to the Social Economy, and President of the Board of Directors of Febecoop which promotes and defends the co-operative model at regional, federal, European and international level.
Furthermore, she is a member of the Board and the Executive Committee of the Belgian insurance association (Assuralia), and several other organisations in Belgium and other European countries.
Zurich strengthens team with new Regional Head of Retail
Zurich International Life, Middle East (Zurich) has strengthened its team with the appointment of Mr Colum O’Brien overseeing all retail distribution, marketing and communications activities in the region. He will be a member of the Executive Team and reports directly to the CEO, Walter Jopp.
In this newly created role, Mr O’Brien will be leading the retail distribution team across Zurich’s bank and IFA channels in the region. Furthermore, the marketing and communications team will be directed by him to ensure an integrated approach between departments to maintain Zurich’s market leading position in the Middle East.
Mr O’Brien has worked in a number of senior roles in distribution since joining Zurich in 1983. Most recently he headed up the global distribution management for Zurich’s life business. Prior to that, he was the Head of IFAs and Head of Retail for Zurich Ireland. He is a board member of Zurich Intermediary Group Ltd in the UK.
UAE: AXIS Accident & Health expands presence in Dubai
Mr Anees Ahmad has joined AXIS Accident & Health as Vice President and Business Development Manager for its MENA reinsurance business.
Mr Ahmad works out of AXIS Capital’s office in the DIFC and reports to Mr Rob Smart, Senior Vice President, International Reinsurance of AXIS Accident & Health. Mr Ahmad is the second Accident & Health hire in Dubai in recent months.
He has spent his entire career in Dubai working in medical reinsurance. Most recently, he served as Regional Underwriter, Middle East & Africa for Munich Re. He previously worked as an Assistant Manager, Technical & Policy Maintenance for Middle East, MedNet (Munich Health).