Ageas has announced the appointment of their new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Hans De Cuyper, succeeding Bart De Smet, who will become the Chairman of the Group.
De Smet will be replacing Jozef De Mey who recently announced his decision to step down. The pairs’ new positions will become official on 22 October 2020.
De Cuyper is the current CEO of Ageas’ Belgian subsidiary, AG Insurance. With over 20 years of experience in the insurance industry, Ageas has appointed an experienced leader and people manager with extensive knowledge of the Group.
Through various senior management positions held in both Asia and Belgium, De Cuyper is well equipped to successfully lead Ageas as they expand and develop.
De Cuyper joined the company in 2004 as Director Insurance Management Asia in Hong Kong. In 2013, he returned to Belgium to take up the role of Chief Financial Officer of AG Insurance.
Since 2015, Hans held the position of Chief Executive Officer of AG Insurance and consequently CEO of the ‘Belgium’ segment within the Group.
De Smet joined the company in 1998 as a member of the management committee of Fortis AG (now AG Insurance) with responsibility for Fortis Employee Benefits. In June 2009 he then became the CEO. Fortis was renamed Ageas in 2010.
As newly appointed CEO, Hans will be proposed as member of the Ageas Board at the Shareholders’ Meeting of 22 October 2020.
Following his appointment as CEO of Ageas, the selection process to appoint a new CEO for AG Insurance has been launched.
In the coming months, Bart and Hans will continue to work closely with their respective executive teams to support a smooth transition of responsibilities.
Both appointments are subject to the approval of the National Bank of Belgium.
Commenting on the appointments, De Mey said: “I would like to congratulate Hans on his appointment as the new CEO of Ageas. The Board is confident that Hans’s extensive experience both in Europe and Asia will ensure that the company is well prepared for the future and ready to embark on the next exciting stage in its evolution.
“I take this opportunity to also congratulate Bart on being appointed as Chairman of the Board of Ageas. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Bart for his exemplary performance as CEO for more than a decade. His leadership has been truly inspirational, and we know he will continue to add enormous value to the Group as Chairman.
“It is testament to the breadth of management talent within the Group that both appointments have been filled internally following a full and independent review that assessed a range of internal and external candidates as part of our succession planning process.”
De Cuyper added: “I am honored to have been given this opportunity to lead the company through the next chapter in its history and I am grateful for the trust the Board has shown in me. Under Bart’s leadership, Ageas has transformed itself over the past decade into a successful independent international insurance group. I am looking forward to working together with the team that has written this amazing story over the last 10 years.
“I also want to thank the Executive Committee and all my colleagues at AG Insurance for all the great work! You never failed to deliver on your promise to the Group. I am eager to catch up with our developments in Asia since I left the region in 2013, and to guiding our businesses across Europe and Asia into a bright future. I’m excited about the many opportunities that lie ahead of us and to continuing the great work.”
De Smet said: “As I look back on my tenure as CEO I do so with much pride. I had an incredible team of people behind me, and together we delivered on our promises. In accepting the role of Chairman of the Board of Ageas Group, I am pleased that I will continue to be a part of the Ageas growth story and to witness even more success in the coming years.
“I congratulate my successor and wish him well for the future. These are exciting times in our industry, and also challenging times for society, but I feel confident that under Hans’s leadership we will continue to deliver what our stakeholders expect from us.”
