Zurich poaches Swiss Re for CFO replacement
Zurich Insurance Group, still shaken by the suicide of its financial chief last August, said on Monday that it had hired competitor Swiss Re's CFO to take his place.
The insurer said in a statement that it had appointed British expat George Quinn, 47, as its new chief financial officer and a member of its group executive committee.
Quinn, who has served as the financial chief at reinsurer Swiss Re for the past six years, "is very well positioned to contribute to the delivery on Zurich's strategy and help take the company to the next level", Zurich chief executive Martin Senn said.
Quinn, who will begin his new job on May 1st 2014, said in a statement from his current employer that he had "mixed emotions" about the shift, after spending 14 years with Swiss Re.
"I am grateful for having had the opportunity to significantly shape the group's business strategy and be part of a great team," he said, adding though that he was now "looking forward to the new phase in my career".
A member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, Quinn started his career at KPMG in London.
He is also a member of the board of trustees of the Zurich International School.
At Zurich Insurance, he will be replacing Pierre Wauthier, who was found dead at his home on August 26th.
His suicide prompted Zurich's powerful chairman and former head of Deutsche Bank, Josef Ackermann to resign three days later amid speculation that the two had fallen out over the group's accounts.
Ackermann said he had decided to quit because he had reasons to believe that Wauthier's family felt he should take a share of the responsibility, though he underlined that any allegations were unfounded.
Two independent probes meanwhile concluded Wauthier, a 53-year-old French and British citizen who had served as CFO since 2011, had not been subjected to any "undue or inappropriate pressure", and that "the financial figures were confirmed as appropriate", the insurer said last month.
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The insurer said in a statement that it had appointed British expat George Quinn, 47, as its new chief financial officer and a member of its group executive committee.
Quinn, who has served as the financial chief at reinsurer Swiss Re for the past six years, "is very well positioned to contribute to the delivery on Zurich's strategy and help take the company to the next level", Zurich chief executive Martin Senn said.
Quinn, who will begin his new job on May 1st 2014, said in a statement from his current employer that he had "mixed emotions" about the shift, after spending 14 years with Swiss Re.
"I am grateful for having had the opportunity to significantly shape the group's business strategy and be part of a great team," he said, adding though that he was now "looking forward to the new phase in my career".
A member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, Quinn started his career at KPMG in London.
He is also a member of the board of trustees of the Zurich International School.
At Zurich Insurance, he will be replacing Pierre Wauthier, who was found dead at his home on August 26th.
His suicide prompted Zurich's powerful chairman and former head of Deutsche Bank, Josef Ackermann to resign three days later amid speculation that the two had fallen out over the group's accounts.
Ackermann said he had decided to quit because he had reasons to believe that Wauthier's family felt he should take a share of the responsibility, though he underlined that any allegations were unfounded.
Two independent probes meanwhile concluded Wauthier, a 53-year-old French and British citizen who had served as CFO since 2011, had not been subjected to any "undue or inappropriate pressure", and that "the financial figures were confirmed as appropriate", the insurer said last month.
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