Thomas Bradley appointed as Argo chairman; Kevin Rehnberg made CEO and board nominee

Re/insurer Argo Group International Holdings has appointed Thomas Bradley to serve as chairman of the board of directors upon the retirement of current board chairman Gary Woods, whose term concludes following Argo’s annual general meeting to be held on April 16, 2020.

Kevin Rehnberg, who has been serving as interim CEO, has been appointed chief executive officer, effective immediately, and has been nominated to stand for election to the company’s board of directors at the company’s annual meeting.

The news comes after Argo said that it expects to report an underwriting loss of approximately $114 million for the fourth quarter of 2019. It said these “unacceptable” results were adversely affected by certain loss and expense items and several non-operating charges.

These include corporate expenses of approximately $8 million, which primarily resulted from costs related to the previously announced independent directors’ review of certain governance and compensation matters and Argo’s cooperation agreement with Voce Capital. The results will be released on February 24.

Bradley became a director for Argo Group in 2018. He retired from Allied World Assurance Company Holdings AG in 2017, where he had served as chief financial officer and executive vice president since 2012. Bradley was previously executive vice president and chief financial officer at two other public companies: Fair Isaac Corporation and The St. Paul Companies. He held senior financial and operational positions at Zurich North America.

Rehnberg has served as interim chief executive officer since November 2019, and has been with the company for seven years. In January of 2019, Rehnberg was appointed to serve as chief administrative officer and the head of the Americas business. From March 2013 to January 2019, he was president of Argo’s US operations, overseeing all activities of Argo’s US-based business segments.

Before joining the company, he served as executive vice president for specialty lines at OneBeacon Insurance, where he oversaw specialty underwriting operations and acquired and built new lines of specialty business. Prior to that, he held positions at The St. Paul Travelers Companies, Liberty International and Chubb Corporation.

“Tom joined the board with vast experience in numerous insurance industry leadership roles,” said Woods. “His strategic vision for the business and intense focus on the highest standards of corporate governance will benefit our customers, shareholders and employees.

“We are also pleased that Kevin will serve as CEO on a permanent basis. He has demonstrated his abilities as a results-oriented leader. It has been an honour to serve as chairman, and I am confident we have the right leadership in place for the future.”

Woods joined Argo’s board in 2000 and has served as chairman since 2001.

“On behalf of the entire board,” Bradley said, “I would like to sincerely thank Gary for his commitment and contributions to Argo, providing leadership as the company has expanded from a very small regional insurer generating approximately $300 million in gross written premium to a strong specialty insurer exceeding $3 billion in annual gross written premium.

“Argo Group is a solid company poised for prosperity in the specialty insurance marketplace,” added Bradley. “It is a privilege to serve as chairman working with the board and Argo’s leadership team to ensure the company continues to deliver on its commitments to shareholders, clients and employees.”

Rehnberg said: “It is an honour to take on this role and collaborate with such a talented team. We will continue to serve our customers and partners – pursuing strong results through operational excellence and innovative solutions.”