Athene Holding names new president
Athene Holding Ltd., parent company of West Des Moines-based Athene USA, has appointed William Wheeler as president, effective Sept. 28.
Wheeler, who has 28 years of insurance and financial services experience, most recently was president of MetLife Inc.’s Americas division, with responsibility for MetLife’s insurance and retirement business in the United States and Latin America.
The move signals another step toward an initial public offering by Athene, Bloomberg reported. “I look forward to working with the team to produce significant profitable growth, deliver strong financial results and help take the company public,” Wheeler said in a statement.
Wheeler succeeds Grant Kvalheim as president of Athene Holding; Kvalheim will continue in his present role as CEO of Athene USA.
During his 17-year tenure with MetLife, Wheeler held various roles including executive vice president and chief financial officer. Prior to that, he oversaw product management and marketing for the individual business and financial reporting for the institutional business.
Additionally, Wheeler served as treasurer and played a key role in preparing MetLife to become a public company. Earlier in his career he worked as an investment banker for 10 years at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and an A.B. from Wabash College.
Athene Chairman and CEO Jim Belardi said: “I am pleased to have Bill join our strong executive team. He has a wealth of experience and an impressive background in the insurance industry and retirement savings sector. He is a talented executive with a wide range of capabilities, which we are confident will benefit Athene as we continue to grow our business. We look forward to working with him.”
Athene has had a U.S. headquarters presence in Greater Des Moines since October 2013, when Athene Holding completed its acquisition of Aviva USA Corp. and its subsidiaries, including Iowa-domiciled Aviva Life and Annuity Co., and New York-domiciled Aviva Life and Annuity Company of New York.
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