Generali
The Italian insurer has appointed Marco Sesana as country manager of Italy. He will also retain the position of chief executive of Generali Italia. He joined Generali Italia in 2013 as chief operating officer and was tasked with integrating its Italian insurance companies.
Sesana subsequently took over responsibility for the insurance business – including life, non-life and claims management – before becoming chief executive of Generali Italia in May 2016. In his new role he will oversee the next phase in the development of Generali’s Italian business, which will focus on better customer experience, stronger distribution networks, and innovation.
Generali’s board also appointed Timothy Ryan as group chief investment officer, effective from 9 January 2017. A citizen of the US and UK, Ryan brings with him experience in asset management, having held leading roles in Axa Investment Managers and AllianceBernstein, with posts in France, Japan and the UK.
Ravenscroft
Ravenscroft has promoted Mark Bousfield to the role of group managing director. In addition to his new role, he will also remain head of Ravenscroft Investment Management and retain oversight of the Huntress Fund range.
In further changes, Charlie Roger has stepped down from the Ravenscroft board after three years and will leave the company in March 2017.
Old Mutual
After more than 27 years at Old Mutual Wealth, Adrian Walker will retire at the end of the year. He will be replaced by Ian Browne, who will take over as head of retirement proposition marketing in January.
Walker has been at OMW since October 1989. Over the years he has been responsible for the development of the company’s retirement proposition for advisers and clients.
Ian Browne joins from Axa Life Invest where he has been for the past two years. Most recently he was the group’s UK propositions manager and pension and regulatory specialist. Before Axa he worked as a product proposition manager for Sun Life Financial Canada and a technical support consultant for Ecclesiastical Insurance Group.
Manulife
Manulife Asset Management has named R. James (Jamie) Robertson as a senior portfolio manager to its Portfolio Solutions Group (PSG), subject to regulatory approval. Robertson is based in Toronto and reports to Nathan Thooft, co-head of PSG for North America. PSG oversees all the multi-asset-class strategies for Manulife Asset Management globally.
Robertson will be responsible for overseeing Manulife AM’s Canadian asset allocation franchise, including portfolio management, research and development, and supporting product development, business development, and trading.
Most recently, he was chief investment officer with McLean and Partners in Calgary, where he was responsible for driving and improving the investment performance of multi-asset-class portfolios at one of Canada’s largest private wealth management companies.
Rowan Dartington
Rowan Dartington has appointed Bryan Parkinson to drive forward the firm’s activity and development in the north. He joins from Barclays, where he was head of private clients for three years, following two years as director of intermediary sales with the bank. His previous roles also included chief executive of Standard Life Client Management.
Parkinson will be based in Leeds and will lead Rowan Dartington’s investment directors in the north, communicating and implementing the company’s business goals and objectives to ensure consistency and best client experience across regional offices.
Avignon Capital
European property investment specialist Avignon Capital has added to its team with the recruitment of Sam Salloway and Sarah Page from Savills, with both set to be based at the firm’s London office.
Salloway joins the firm as an investment and fund analyst, having achieved a strong track record in pan-European real estate transactions at Savills Investment Management. He will be responsible for sourcing, underwriting and executing investments in the UK and Europe.
Page’s role at Avignon Capital will be asset manager; having worked on the asset and investment management team at Savills, she will focus on the asset management of Avignon’s UK and European portfolio, as well as sourcing new investment opportunities for the business.
