HAMILTON, Bermuda, March 14, 2006 – The ACE Group of Companies announced today that Andy Gibbs, Chief Financial and Operations Officer for ACE Bermuda, and Gus Hardart, Chief Financial Officer for ACE Tempest Re Group, will exchange positions. This exchange is part of the ACE Group's business continuity and succession plan for key financial executives within the group. Effective May 1, Mr. Gibbs becomes Chief Financial Officer for ACE Tempest Re Group and Mr. Hardart becomes Chief Financial Officer for ACE Bermuda. Mr. Hardart's appointment is subject to approval by the Bermuda Department of Labour and Immigration.
Both Mr. Gibbs and Mr. Hardart have many years of experience in the finance field. This exchange is designed to provide each of them with an opportunity to expand their scope of work and gain increased exposure to ACE’s reinsurance and insurance operations respectively and allow them to further develop and broaden their expertise.
“We are delighted to announce this exchange arrangement for two of our Bermuda-based finance executives,” said Rees Fletcher, President and Chief Executive Officer, ACE Bermuda. “Andy takes with him a sound financial background and just over 10 years of experience within ACE Bermuda. I am confident that he will make a tremendous addition to the ACE Tempest Re team.”
Jacques Bonneau, President and Chief Executive Officer, ACE Tempest Re Group said, “Gus has played an integral part in the development of the ACE Tempest Re Group as it has grown from a mono-line property catastrophe underwriter into a diversified global reinsurer. We wish him the very best in his new position and look forward to working with Andy as he assumes our Chief Financial Officer role.”
Mr. Gibbs joined ACE Limited in January 1996 as Senior Vice President Accounting. He was appointed Chief Financial & Operations Officer for ACE Bermuda in 1999, with responsibility for the company’s finance, actuarial, underwriting services, compensation and administration functions. Prior to joining ACE, he worked for Ernst & Young as an insurance audit partner in the company’s Bermuda office. Mr. Gibbs is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales, as well as an Associate of the Chartered Insurance Institute. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Essex, England.
Mr. Hardart joined ACE in 2002 as Chief Financial Officer for the ACE Group’s global reinsurance operations. He previously worked in the Bermuda office of Arthur Anderson, where he served as Audit Partner with responsibility for the finance, human resources and audit departments. Prior to that he held the position of partner-in-charge in the company’s Grand Cayman office. Mr. Hardart holds the Certified Public Accountant and Chartered Accountant designations and obtained his bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from Georgetown University, Washington DC.
ACE Bermuda is a Bermuda-based subsidiary of ACE Limited and offers high-level excess liability, property and professional lines insurance products and services through Bermuda and non-US based intermediaries. The ACE Tempest Re Group oversees the reinsurance operations of the ACE Group of Companies and is headquartered in Bermuda.
The ACE Group of Companies is a global leader in insurance and reinsurance serving a diverse group of clients. Headed by ACE Limited (NYSE:ACE), a component of the Standard & Poor’s 500 stock index, the ACE Group conducts its business on a worldwide basis with operating subsidiaries in more than 50 countries. Additional information can be found at: www.acelimited.com.