With the implementation of the EU’s IORP II Directive, Aon in December 2019 announced it would stop offering its United Pensions solution for cross border pension solutions. Aon Retirement and Investment, Netherlands, CEO, Frank Driessen, explained that while existing Dutch United Pension clients will not be affected, there is a great deal of uncertainty and mistrust around cross-border pension transfers. What has been a thorn in the side of

Since the beginning of the 2019-2020 COVID-19 pandemic, a great wealth of information has been made available to the general public as well as to human resources professionals. GBV has no particular expertise in epidemiology, the treatment of people affected by COVID-19, or the socioeconomic impact of the pandemic, and therefore refrains from adding to the noise component of what is now on offer. Nevertheless, the editorial team here

Sean Genden has been named Head of International Insurance at Hartford, Connecticut, USA-based investment and insurance company The Hartford. Prior to this he was with Travelers for 28 years in roles such as International Business Insurance Segment Leader. Previously, he served as Chief Executive Officer, Europe and earlier as Chief Operating Officer for Travelers Europe. In an executive capacity he served as an Executive Board Member of both Travelers

Danilo Lima in February 2019 founded and now leads employee benefits consulting firm 360 Beneficios, located in Sao Paolo, Brazil. 360 Benefícios is an HR Tech firm that focuses on employee benefits integration in Brazil; its software and services simplify selecting, implementing, and managing corporate benefits. Prior to 360 Beneficios, Danilo was a Business Manager with startup acceleration program InovAtiva Brazil and with Aliança Empreendedora (Entrepreneurial Alliance); a Regional

The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) in December 2019 adopted changes to the IFRS 17 exposure draft supported by the insurance industry, and has decided to delay discussions about extending the new standards’ effective date beyond the current 2022 deadline. IFRS 17, issued in May 2017, is the first truly international accounting standard for insurance contracts. It addresses the many inadequacies of local rules in accounting for such contracts.

Due to the coronavirus / COVID-19 outbreak, the International Employee Benefits Association (IEBA) postponed its 2020 International Conference from March to September, 2020. The event had been slated to take place on March 11-12, 2020 in Brussels, Belgium. IEBA announced on March 5 that the conference will be held on September 22 and 23, 2020. The venue remains the same: The Hotel in Brussels, Belgium.

One year after having announced, then cancelled plans to merge with Willis Towers Watson (WTW), Aon in March 2020 announced an agreement to acquire WTW in what will be the industry’s largest ever merger. The purchase price is $30bn, paid in Aon shares, and the combined firm is valued at around $80b. Regulatory requirements may make a comprehensive takeover of WTW by Aon difficult, given that Aon and WTW

Due to the coronavirus / COVID-19 outbreak, the Captive Insurance Companies Association (CICA) cancelled its 2020 International Conference. The event had been slated to take place on March 8-10, 2020 in California, USA. No new date has been announced at the time of publication.

Aon named Eric Andersen as president of the company in February 2020, reporting to Chief Executive Greg Case. Andersen will continue to be based in New York City. Andersen first joined Aon in 1997 via the acquisition of Minet. Prior to that, Andersen also worked in London at Alexander Howden. He has been in the C-suite since 2010, when he was named CEO for ARS Americas. Andersen was named

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) in February 2020 released its list of the top five risks to the global economy in 2020: The likelihood of at least one of these five possible events occurring in 2020 is … 69%.   The EIU report can be downloaded from this page (contact information required). The company is the research and analysis division of The Economist Group, the sister company to The

The Captive Insurance Companies Association (CICA) 2020 International Conference will take place on March 8-10, 2020, at the Westin Mission Hills Golf Resort and Spa in Rancho Mirage, California. The conference theme in 2020 is “Building on the Best”. The CICA conference explores new uses of captives, how to engage new talent, and outlines best practices. A Professional Development Track provides training for captive and risk management professionals. Conference

The European Association of Paritarian Institutions (AEIP) in February 2020 announced the appointment of Alexandra Kaydzhiyska to the newly created position of Executive Director, based in Brussels, Belgium. Alexandra previously was AEIP’s Permanent Representative and Team Lead, in charge of developing AEIP; leading the Brussels-based team; and relations with European institutions & partners. Earlier in her career, she was Policy Advisor for Financial & Economic Affairs with AEIP; Policy

The European Association of Paritarian Institutions (AEIP) announces the 12th edition of the Transatlantic & World Pension Alliance Conference. The event will take place from 27 to 29 May 2020 in Brussels, Belgium. Moderated by GBV magazine, the conference is organized by AEIP in cooperation with the U.S. National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans (NCCMP), the Multi-employer Benefit Plan Council of Canada (MEBCO), and the World Pension Alliance, currently

U.S. broker Alliant in February 2020 announced the appointment of Philippe de Dreuzy to head up its global benefits practice as Senior Vice President and Global Practice Leader. He will be based near San Francisco, California. With headquarters in Newport Beach, California, Alliant Insurance Services provides property and casualty, workers’ compensation, employee benefits, underwriting, surety, and financial products and services to clients in the U.S. Over his 25-year career

The International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) in May 2020 organizes the first edition of its new CONNECT Global Benefits Summit. A non-profit association, IFEBP has 8,200 organizations and 32,000 individuals as members; 87% are based in the U.S. and 13% in Canada. IFEBP operates out of Brookfield, Wisconsin (USA). The inaugural event is designed for experienced multinational benefit professionals. This dynamic event will feature expert-led sessions and

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Nathalia Luna since January 2020 assumes the role of Global Benefits Actuary at Allianz Global Benefits. In this new position she steers all actuarial tasks related to the technical development and implementation of Allianz Global Benefit’s proposition. Based in Stuttgart, she reports to François Jacquemin, Head of Products & Solutions. Nathalia Luna joins us from the International Development Life department of Allianz Lebensversicherungs-AG in Germany where she has been

Brazilian insurance carrier SulAmerica in January 2020 joined Generali Employee Benefits (GEB) as a new partner for health and related coverage. Generali Brazil continues to provide life, accident, and disability coverage in Brazil for GEB clients.    

OECD’s new report, Pension Markets in Focus 2019, shows that despite a decline of pension assets in the OECD area and internationally in 2017/18, over the last decade, however, pension assets have increased in nominal terms in almost all reporting countries. This can be attributed to an increase in the proportion of working-age coverage, which was strong in countries such as Israel, Latvia, Bulgaria, Colombia, North Macedonia, and New

Dan Bensadoun MD has been appointed Partner and Doctor at Paris Prevention. He previously was CEO and Founder of telemedicine services firm TALIE.DB Consulting, and Co-founder and Medical Director of MY-MEDICAL-DIRECTOR. He spent 14 years at General Electric Corporate where from 2003-2017 he was EMEA Medical Director in charge of healthcare initiatives, and earlier Europe, Middle East, and Africa Medical Director. He was in charge of 40+ GE clinics

Aetna’s new report, The Business of health 2020 – Tackling polarised perceptions of corporate health and wellness, looks at how technology can positively impact employee mental ill health and lifestyle-related health conditions in an increasingly blurred work-life balance in the workplace. The report was published in January 2020. With wellbeing now being broader in scope than previously understood, it has come to include physical and emotional health, financial security, social

Giovanni di Meo in January 2020 has been appointed Regional Sales Director Asia Pacific, taking responsibility for client management and sales activities in the Asia Pacific region. Giovanni is based in Munich and reports to Cyril Samson, Head of Sales. Prior to this, Giovanni worked as Head of Business Development at Generali Employee Benefits. With over 10 years of international experience in corporate and retail insurance, he has also

Early Registration for the 2020 IBIS Academy is open! Join Global Benefits Vision for the 50th edition of the IBIS Academy presented by Gallagher on 11-15 May, 2020 in Geneva, Switzerland. Gain insights, knowledge, and the skills you need to keep your organization among the ranks of the top global employers. Early registration savings are available. Learn more at ajg.com/ibisacademy or register today at http://www.cvent.com/d/ghqnp4 #IBISAcademy2020 #gallagherbetterworks #gallagher

Annette Decker in December 2019 has been made Senior International Benefit Consultant at Siemens, where she has been in various positions since 2011, including with Siemens Financial Services as Senior Pension Manager, M&A. Prior to her time at Siemens, she has held positions as Head of Company Pensions HypoVereinsbank, Account Manager at Aon Hewitt Consulting Deutschland. She started her career as a consultant for KPMG in 1992. Annette is

Tim Davis in December 2019 joined Aon in London as Human Capital Project Manager Aon M&A Transaction Solutions from EY where he worked for over 2 years as Advisor, People Advisory Services – Global Benefits. Tim has 16 years’ experience in financial services, including over 6 years in various positions at Punter Southall Aspire where he was Associate Director, International before leaving to join EY. Before joining Punter Southall,

Nick Skipper in December 2019 has been made Director of Employee Benefits at Clear Insurance Management of the UK. He was previously an Account Director. Before joining Clearance, Nick was with Willis Towers Watson (WTW) for 4 years where he oversaw major accounts as Account Director, Head Major accounts; and an Employee Benefits Consultant at Marsh before joining WTW. Nick attended The Oratory school in Oxford. He has appeared

Airmic’s report, Managing Risk−The Human Factor, sheds light on the “unprecedented volatility with regards to people risk” and stresses the importance of HR, benefits, and risk professionals working together more closely. The report published in December 2019 in association with Arthur D. Little, Willis Towers Watson and Zurich, positions people risk around the people themselves instead of creating newer categories. This allows a view where risks which may have