Axis Re CEO quits; interim executive to replace him
John ‘Jay’ Nichols has resigned from his position of CEO of Bermuda-based AXIS Re, according to a statement from the company.
According to Axis Re Nichols will remain with the company in a transitional role until March 31, before being succeeded by Jan Ekberg, acting as interim CEO of the company. Ekberg currently serves as president and chief underwriting officer of AXIS Re Europe and will report directly to AXIS Capital president and CEO Albert Benchimol. He has been with the Company since 2004.
“When I joined AXIS Re, we set a plan to profitably grow the reinsurance business, improve our analytical capabilities and expand into strategic capital partnerships to match the right risk with the right capital,” said Nichols in the Axis Re statement. “I am grateful for what we have accomplished in all areas of the reinsurance business and I have been honoured to lead such a talented and committed group for the past five years.
“I’ve very deeply enjoyed working with my team, my colleagues across AXIS, and being a part of the Company’s leadership. While there is still more work to be done, now is a good time for a transition and I leave with the confidence that AXIS Re is well-positioned to succeed and in very capable hands.”
“On behalf of AXIS, we would like to thank Jay for all he has done for our company,” Benchimol said in the statement. “When Jay joined AXIS, we introduced a plan to strengthen our reinsurance business and broaden our risk-funding sources through high-quality partnerships.
“Over the past five years we have made significant progress and AXIS Re is a global reinsurance leader, well-positioned against the backdrop of a structural shift in the reinsurance industry. We have also established AXIS as a strategic partner to respected third party capital providers. With this solid foundation in place, Jay has decided that he would like to leave to take on new challenges. We are deeply appreciative of Jay’s leadership and wish him the absolute best.”
Ekberg has more than 40 years of (re)insurance industry experience with more than 20 of these years managing underwriting businesses. He joined AXIS Re Europe in 2004 shortly after its formation and according to the company has been integral to establishing AXIS Re Europe as a leading international reinsurer.
