Aviva appoints new CEO for international business

Aviva announced last Friday that Adam Winslow has been appointed CEO of International, a newly created role that is responsible for the insurer's international businesses in continental Europe and Asia. He will join Aviva next January and report directly to Aviva CEO Amanda Blanc, who took on her own role earlier this year.

Winslow has almost 20 years in the international insurance industry and is currently the CEO of AIG's Global Life Insurance business, a position he has held since 2019. He has also headed several of AIG's UK businesses. Prior to AIG, he was the Chairman of Ireland-based Laya Healthcare, and before that, he held several leadership positions in Aviva's UK operations—making this his second stint with the insurer.

Blanc said of Winslow's appointment: “I am determined to change Aviva and unlock value. This requires the strongest possible leadership team. Adam Winslow will bring focus and decisiveness as we manage our businesses in continental Europe and Asia for long-term shareholder value.”

The creation of the CEO of International role is the latest step in Blanc's strategy to refocus Aviva's business. Since her appointment in July, Aviva has been shifting its growth plans towards the UK, Ireland, and Canada, where it has its strongest presence, and slowly separating its international businesses from these core markets.

However, as the separation is apparently going to involve large-scale divestitures—Aviva's very first step in the new strategy was to sell off a large chunk of its Singapore business in September—it's not clear what Winslow will be expected to achieve in his new position.