Swiss Life has appointed chief financial officer Matthias Aellig as group CEO.
He will succeed Patrick Frost, who will step down on 16 May next year after almost a decade in the role. Frost first joined the life insurer as group chief investment officer back in 2006.
The firm’s board of directors revealed it intends to propose the election of Frost as a member of the board of directors at its 2026 annual general meeting.
Frost said: “After serving for 18 years on the group executive board of Swiss Life, 10 of which as CEO, I have decided to step down from my operational role in May 2024 to focus more on strategic tasks.
“I am convinced that, in view of the very good performance of our company, now is the right time for a change at the top of the group executive board. I am pleased to be able to hand over this role to Matthias Aellig, with whom I have had a very trustful working relationship for many years.”
Rolf Dörig, chairman of the board of directors of Swiss Life, added: “Since 2006, Patrick Frost has made a decisive contribution to the continued success of our company with his impressive work.
“His far-sighted approach as CEO made a profound and lasting impact on Swiss Life during challenging times. On behalf of the board of directors, the group executive board and the employees of Swiss Life, I would like to thank him most sincerely for this.
“Matthias Aellig is among those personalities at our company who in recent years have played a key role in helping Patrick Frost shape the strategy of the entire group. By selecting him as successor, the Board of Directors is demonstrating its commitment to continuity. I am very pleased to have this opportunity to work closely with Matthias Aellig in the coming years.”
Aellig said: “I am very much looking forward to continuing to shape the future of Swiss Life as CEO from mid-May. I would like to thank the board of directors for the confidence they have placed in me, and I am delighted to be able to continue our collaboration, also with both new colleagues on the group executive board.
“In cooperation with the entire group executive board and all our employees, I will do my utmost to continue on the successful path we have forged.”
Meanwhile Marco Gerussi will become group CFO and a member of the group executive board on 16 May 2024. He joined Swiss Life in 2010 and has held management positions in risk management and finance.
Since 2018, as head of finance transformation, he has been responsible for the challenging but successful introduction of the IFRS 17/9 accounting standards and the associated Group-wide finance systems. In addition, he took over as head of group IT in 2023.
Over in Germany, after seven years as CEO of Swiss Life Germany, Jörg Arnold will step down at his own request at the end of June 2024 and assume the role of non-executive chairman of the supervisory board of Swiss Life Deutschland.
Since 2017, under his leadership, both the number of advisers and the fee result of the owned IFAs almost doubled, while the value of new insurance business almost tripled.
Dirk von der Crone will take over the helm of Swiss Life Germany as of 1 July 2024. He has been with the company since 2005 and a member of the local German Executive Committee since 2020, where he is responsible for services and operations for the owned IFAs as well as HR.
Dirk von der Crone’s contributions include realigning purchasing operations, back office processes and product management at the owned IFAs. As CEO of Swiss Life Germany, he will become a member of the group executive board of Swiss Life.
His appointment is subject to the approval of the relevant supervisory authorities.