Bermuda headquartered insurance and reinsurance firm Everest Re Group, Ltd. has announced that its current President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dominic J. Addesso is set to retire at the end of 2019.
The re/insurer’s Board announced that Addesso will not continue with the firm beyond his current contract term.
Addesso informed the Board of Everest Re of his intention to retire when his contract runs out at December 31st 2019.
Joseph V. Taranto, Chairman of the Board, commented, “Dom has done a great job of growing Everest and positioning us for the future. We are thankful for his continued leadership.”
This news has come as a surprise to analysts, who said they expect that Everest Re shares may trade down a little in reaction to it.
The work to identify a replacement has already begun at Everest Re, with the Board activating its succession planning process and undertaking a search for a replacement, which will include reviewing both internal and external candidates in order to have a new CEO lined up in time for 2020.
Addesso joined Everest Re in 2009, since which time the share price has appreciated by more than one-third and the company has significantly expanded its global footprint and diversification into insurance.
Key achievements include the development of Everest Insurance into a leading primary market franchise, Everest Re’s adoption of third-party capital as a key part of its capital stack, and a much more robust reserving process at the reinsurer.
Analysts at Morgan Stanley highlight potential internal candidates including, Reinsurance CEO John Doucette (53), Insurance CEO Jon Zaffino (46), and CFO Craig Howe (55), citing the “deep management bench” as suggesting an internal promotion could be likely.
The transition period of almost a full year provides Everest Re with plenty of time to identify the best candidate to take the company forwards and gives ample time for a handover to take place.
