OLD Mutual has announced the appointment of actuary Iain Williamson as the new finance director of Old Mutual Emerging Markets (OMEM) with effect from August 1.
BUSINESS REPORTER
Williamson replaces Katie Murray, who had been with OMEM on a five-year intergroup transfer from Old Mutual plc in London. Murray will remain in the business until the end of October 2015 to ensure a smooth handover to Williamson before returning to the UK, Old Mutual said.
In a statement yesterday Old Mutual said Williamson will also join the OMEM board as an executive director.
Williamson is currently the managing director of Old Mutual South Africa’s Retail Affluent segment, which is the largest business by profit contribution in the emerging markets cluster.
He has been with the company for 22 years and has deep experience across its long-term savings, investments and protection businesses.
OMEM chief executive officer Ralph Mupita said: “We want to congratulate Iain on his well-deserved appointment as Finance Director. He is a remarkable leader and his extensive financial background and impressive depth of experience position him well to build on Katie’s achievements. We also want to thank her for her invaluable contribution over the last five years to the strategic development of our business and the building of a world-class finance function.”
Williamson said he was looking forward to his new role. “It is certainly a very exciting challenge and I am eager to serve the team by executing our capital management and funding priorities and continuing to deliver excellent financial analysis and reporting.” Williamson attained his Bachelor of Business Science (Actuarial) and Post-Graduate Diploma in Actuarial Science, from the University of Cape Town. He is a Fellow of the Actuarial Society of South Africa and a graduate of Harvard Business School’s General Management Programme.
