The promotion of Van Der Wielen is subject to regulatory approval.
At the same time, James Tan, who last year was named general manager for Friends Provident International’s Asia and Middle East operations, has been named the company’s first-ever Hong Kong-based managing director.
It is the first time the managing director of Friends Provident International has been based in Asia, and reflects the company’s strategic eastward shift in recent years, as it saw the greatest growth, and potential, coming from such markets as the Middle East, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Tan’s appointment as MD prompted some observers to speculate that Friends Life was in the final stages of preparing to sell the FPI operation, possibly to an Asia-based buyer. However, a spokesperson for the company said this was not the case, and that having an Asia-based MD merely made sense in the context of the company’s global expansion strategy.
Van Der Wielen has been managing director of Friends Life’s International business since August 2011, when, as reported, he was named to succeed Rocco Sepe. Today’s announcement effectively gives him oversight of the UK and so-called "heritage" operations, comprised of business that pre-dated the formation of the current company, in addition to the international business.
Friends Life is a part of the FTSE 100, Guernsey-based Resolution group of companies.
Friends Life and Friends Provident International have seen numerous executive changes over the past two years. In addition to Sepe, they have included Bob Pain, international sales director; Paul Tunnicliffe, managing director of FPI; Peter Dodds, head of international marketing, and Trevor Smith, Hong Kong sales director, among others.
£37m loss in 2012
As reported, Friends Provident International made a pre-tax loss of £37m in 2012, due to £82m-worth of what it said were one-off restructuring related charges. During the year, FPI stopped accepting business from Japanese nationals, closed its corporate pensions business and some product lines in its European business, as part of a strategic review.
It also sold its 30% stake in the Malaysian joint venture AmLife on 4 Jan, and has said it will cease doing new regular premium pensions business in Germany.
