Qatar Re CEO Saacke to leave company
Qatar Re's Gunther Saacke will step down from his role as CEO and executive director of the Bermuda reinsurer at the company's next board meeting, scheduled for March.
The Qatar Re board has accepted his decision, and Saacke will be leaving the company later on in the year.
"On behalf of QIC, I would like to thank Gunther for his outstanding and significant contribution to Qatar Re," said Khalifa Al Subbay, group CEO & president of Qatar Insurance Company (QIC).
"Under his strong strategic and operational leadership Qatar Re has developed into a formidable franchise, placed among the global Top 30, and is recognized as a modern and reliable reinsurer around the world. In the challenging environment of recent years Gunther has brought to bear his tremendous following in the market. He has been instrumental in building and inspiring our teams and has greatly supported the very substantial and dynamic development of our group."
In the interim, Michael van der Straaten, chief underwriting officer for long tail and specialty classes, has been appointed as acting CEO.
Saacke commented: "I believe that this is an appropriate time for the Company to benefit from the perspectives of a new leader. I would like to express my appreciation to colleagues, customers and the many partners around the world with whom I have worked over the past 6 years.
Saacke started his career with Hannover Re. More recently he was head of reinsurance at Endurance in London and served as founding chief executive and chief underwriting officer of Novae Re, a multi-line reinsurance operation in the Lloyd’s market.
He continued: "Qatar Re is a great company with outstanding prospects as a reliable force to be reckoned with in the ever changing global market. While the market conditions remain challenging, I am confident that our talented, highly dedicated people, our promising pipeline and strong underwriting management will deliver significant value in the years ahead. I wish Mike every success in his new role and am sure he will make a major contribution."
