Zurich to bring in two Macquarie managers

Daniel Longden and Dave Evans join Zurich on 1 October, the date by which the insurer aims to complete the Macquarie Life acquisition, Zurich said in a statement.

Mr Longden will join Zurich as its head of strategy and propositions, also taking a place on its life and investments executive team.

Zurich noted he will oversee the development and implementation of strategy and key initiatives, as well as proposition management and development across Zurich’s life risk and investments portfolios.

Mr Longden has held senior roles at Asteron, including as chief actuary for the Australia/New Zealand region, and as chief financial officer for Australia, the statement said.

Mr Evans joins Zurich as national sales manager for the retail risk division and will assume responsibility for driving sales across Zurich’s life insurance product range.

He will report to Zurich’s head of distribution, Kristine Brooks, and will be an addition to the senior panel of sales professionals on Zurich’s business development management and distribution team, the statement said.

Prior to joining Macquarie, Mr Evans held senior business development roles at both TAL and MLC.

Zurich life and investments chief executive, Tim Bailey, emphasised the significance of the appointments, given the looming Macquarie Life acquisition.

“Combining Macquarie Life with Zurich’s existing operations is a fantastic opportunity that will shape our business into a leading market competitor,” Mr Bailey said.

“Daniel and Dave’s talent will both balance and bolster the capacity already within Zurich, and ensure that we maintain and enhance the level of service we offer to our combined group of customers and advisers.”

Adrian Flores

Adrian Flores is a deputy editor at Momentum Media, focusing mainly on banking, wealth management and financial services. He has also written for Public Accountant, Accountants Daily and The CEO Magazine.

You can contact him on [email protected].