Athora taps former Prudential exec as CEO

Bermuda-based life insurer Athora Holding has appointed the former head of Prudential Plc, Mike Wells, as its chief executive officer (CEO). Wells, who left Prudential earlier this year, oversaw two demergers at the company during his seven-year tenure.

Athora also appointed Michele Bareggi, who has led Athora over the last four years, to the newly created roles of president and deputy CEO.

The European retirement services group, which has €79 billion assets under administration, said Wells is a “seasoned leader” in global insurance having spent 26 years at Prudential, including seven years as CEO. He accelerated Prudential's development of an Asian shareholder base through a successful equity issuance on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and transitioned Prudential into an Asian and African focused life and health insurer.

Bareggi has been at Athora since its formation in 2018 and achieved growth that “reflects the business’ strong foundations and ambition” to become a leading provider of retirement products and solutions in Europe.

“With Mike and Michele and their combined skills and experience we have the ideal leadership team for this next stage of Athora’s development,” said Nikolaus von Bomhard, chairman of Athora’s board of directors.

Wells said: “This is a tremendously exciting time to be joining Athora. I believe there is real demand across Europe for their retirement services, and deep expertise in the long-term management of retirement benefits. I’m very impressed with what Michele and the team have achieved over the last four years and I look forward to getting started.”