Thierry Derez, chief executive of Covéa Group, will replace Brian Dowd as chairman of PartnerRe’s board of directors

French insurance giant Covéa has finalised its $9 billion acquisition of PartnerRe from privately-owned Italian conglomerage Exor. Thierry Derez, chief executive of Covéa Group, will replace Brian Dowd as chairman of the company’s Board of Directors. 

Dowd will remain on the Board as an independent director, along with existing independent directors Mary Ann Brown and Hermann Pohlchristoph. PartnerRe President and CEO, Jacques Bonneau will also remain on the Board.

At the same time, the Company announced that Enrico Vellano and António Horta-Osório have resigned from the Board, in connection with the close of the transaction.

Joining the Board are Maud Petit, chief financial officer and deputy CEO Covéa Group, and Thierry Francq, general manager for Transformation and International Activities Covéa Group. 

Petit was named chief financial officer and deputy CEO of Covéa Group in 2018 and brings more than 25 years of experience in the re/insurance industry. 

Commenting on the appointments, Jacques Bonneau said, “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Enrico and Antonio for their valuable contributions during their time on the PartnerRe Board. I would also like to welcome our new chairman and board members, who will further strengthen the Board’s breadth and depth of talent and will bring a new and valuable perspective.”

Bermudian reinsurer PartnerRe was bought by Italian private equity fund Exor in 2015 for $6.9 billion after a proposed merger with Axis Capital fell through.

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