Top execs exit AXA XL leadership as new CEO rethinks strategy; business split into three units

Re/insurer  AXA XL will be organised around three business units - the Americas, Eurasia, and the UK & Lloyd’s market - as part of a restructure of its operating model following a "strategic review" by  new CEO Scott Gunter.

The company is creating a single global insurance underwriting function with the formation of three geographical business units to enable faster decision-making. The units will be led by individual CEOs, who would be responsible for the balance sheets of their geographies and managing talent. Gunter, who recently replaced Greg Hendrick as AXA XL CEO, will lead the overall company.

The underwriting function will now be led by Nancy Bewlay as global CUO, who will be working to design the structure of the proposed new model. Bewlay will be responsible for underwriting governance, pricing, P&L and the management of the global heads of business lines in order to define and drive product strategy. Bewlay was previously global CUO for long tail property & casualty (P&C) risks. She joined XL Catlin in 2017 as the global CUO for casualty.

Furthermore, Joseph Tocco will serve as CEO of Americas, Scott Gunter as interim CEO of Eurasia, and Sean McGovern as interim CEO of UK & Lloyd’s market.

McGovern will take over from Paul Greensmith who replaced Paul Jardine as UK CEO in 2018.

The new leadership structure will include Charles Cooper as CEO of reinsurance, Brent Hoffman as chief claims officer, Karen le Duc as chief human resources officer, Matthieu Caillat as chief operating officer, Noel Richardson as chief risk officer, Rainer Schoellhammer as chief finance officer, and Sean McGovern as general counsel.

Gunter said: “AXA XL is the result of acquisitions and mergers and with our increased scale, now is the time to optimize our structure by striking the right balance between local and global decision making so we remain agile and flexible.”

“I have spent my first 60 days as CEO considering our priorities and our structure and assembling the right team to drive AXA XL forward," he added. "We want to continue to serve our clients and brokers to the very best of our ability while being a simpler organisation to navigate. The regional structure would mean decisions can be made faster in country, while the global functions would mean our clients and brokers continue to benefit from our global expertise and experience."

Gunter continued: “This Leadership Team is an international, highly experienced team of individuals: around half the team have a background at legacy XL Catlin, while the other half bring diverse and valuable experience from across the AXA Group.

“This is a positive step forward for AXA XL and I strongly believe that this new Leadership Team will ensure we are the insurance partner of choice across business lines and around the world.”