Sovereign appoints ASB executive Nick Stanhope as new boss

Wednesday 2nd March 2016

Sovereign Assurance, New Zealand's biggest life insurer, has appointed Nick Stanhope as chief executive.

Stanhope comes to the role from Sovereign's parent ASB Bank, where he has worked as executive general manager of wealth and insurance since April 2014. ASB is the New Zealand unit of Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

“Nick’s strength of relationships combined with his significant contribution to the Sovereign business while working at ASB, most notably the development of the highly successful Bancassurance channel, made him an outstanding choice for the role," Sovereign chairman Gavin Walker said in a statement. “He is a proven strategic and results driven leader who will be a huge asset to the organisation.”

The position came up for grabs after former CEO Symon Brewis-Weston resigned in November last year, having been in the role since March 2013. Brewis-Weston is now chief executive of ASX-listed financial services company FlexiGroup, which bought Fisher & Paykel Finance for $315 million last October.

Stanhope has worked for ASB in various roles since 1995. Before becoming executive general manager of wealth and insurance in 2014, he was general manager of business banking and retail specialist services, a role which included responsibilities for Sovereign's home loan business.

Stanhope will take over the role on April 11, subject to confirmation by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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