Old Mutual appoints fintech entrepreneur as CEO
Fintech investor and former Sanlam executive Jurie Strydom has been appointed to succeed Iain Williamson as Old Mutual CEO.
Strydom (49) is currently an independent director at Old Mutual and a majority shareholder in an intermediary platform.
Williamson is taking early retirement after more than 30 years with Old Mutual.
For more financial news, go to the News24 Business front page.
Old Mutual has named fintech investor and actuary Jurie Strydom as its CEO designate.
The group announced in February that current CEO Iain Williamson (55) would be taking early retirement in August.
Strydom (49) is a qualified actuary who graduated from the University of Cape Town and also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and an an MBA from the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Strydom is an independent non-executive director of Old Mutual and previously served as CEO of Sanlam Life and Savings, Regent Insurance Group and Alexander Forbes Life. He was also an executive director at Imperial Holdings.
Strydom bought a majority stake in FSPHub, a client management platform for insurance intermediaries, in 2022.
Old Mutual said FSPHub does not currently conduct business with Old Mutual and that Strydom intends to step down from its board to focus on his new role.
'The board was looking for an experienced financial services CEO with strategic grip, an exceptional operational track record, and who had led diverse teams, driven successful transformation, and understood financial technology,' Old Mutual chair Trevor Manuel said.
'We found someone who ticked these boxes. As a board member, Jurie has demonstrated exceptional strategic vision and has a clear focus on the critical business levers necessary to implement the company's strategic priorities, enhance our market position, and achieve growing profitability.'
While Strydom's appointment remains subject to regulatory approval, he will immediately start working as CEO designate alongside Williamson.
He will then take over as CEO from 1 June with Williamson remaining available in an advisory capacity until he retires on 31 August.
Strydom described his appointment as Old Mutual CEO as a privilege and said the group had a promising future.
'I look forward to working with my colleagues and engaging with the diverse range of partners and stakeholders who work with us to drive strategic implementation, innovation, operational resilience, and financial performance,' said Strydom.
Williamson told News24 in March that he had been associated with Old Mutual since it awarded him a bursary at age 18 and that it now felt like a good time to 'take stock.'
'Iain has been a true leader, consistently stepping up to provide calm and firm direction whenever the company faced challenges or while the country was in crisis, as happened during the Covid-19 pandemic,' said Manuel. 'Under his leadership, Old Mutual has become a strong, resilient, and innovative company that embraces new technology and is expanding into new areas of financial services and banking.'
A main challenge for Strydom will be overseeing the public launch of OM Bank, which cost more than R3 billion to set up.
Williamson told News24 in March that he planned to take a bike trip in Namibia and climb Mount Kilimanjaro after he retires at end-August.
He also said he planned to start a director's course at INSEAD, France's renowned business school, in November.
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