HONG KONG, Feb. 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Manulife has announced new appointments to its Greater China management team in Asia, including senior leadership changes in its Hong Kong operations and its life insurance joint venture in China. The announcement follows the continuous success and solid growth of Manulife's Hong Kong and China businesses, and comes as part of the company's strategic move for further expansion in the region.
Guy Mills has been promoted to Executive Vice President and appointed Chief Executive Officer of Manulife (International) Limited. He will oversee the continued growth of all the company's businesses and distribution in Hong Kong and Macau, except for the mutual funds business. Mr. Mills was formerly General Manager of Manulife-Sinochem Life Insurance Company Limited (MSL), Manulife's life insurance joint venture in China. During his three-year tenure with MSL, the company saw significant growth in sales and earnings, extended its business footprint to cover 51 cities in 14 provinces in mainland China and became the first foreign life-insurance joint venture licensed to sell mutual funds through its agency channel.
Mr. Mills is a 21-year Manulife veteran who has held positions in Canada, Japan, the Philippines, Hong Kong and China. Prior to moving to China, his career with Manulife covered many operations and IT leadership roles, notably Chief Operating Officer for Manulife Asia and the first Chief Executive Officer of Manulife Business Processing Services, Manulife's Global Resourcing capability.
In his new role, Mr. Mills will be based in Hong Kong, and will also join the company's Asia Division Executive Committee and Manulife Group Management Committee. He holds an MBA degree from both the University of Washington in St. Louis and Fudan University in Shanghai.
Zhang Kai will be appointed General Manager of Manulife-Sinochem Life Insurance Company Limited subject to necessary regulatory approval. Ms Zhang has had more than 20 years of experience in banking and consulting across North America and Asia. Prior to joining Manulife, she was most recently Head of Consumer Banking and previously Chief Financial Officer of a major global bank's China operations. Ms Zhang started her career in pension consulting and management consulting in the United States, before moving into the banking industry where she held various leadership positions in sales and distribution, marketing, strategy and business development.
Based in Shanghai in her new role, Ms Zhang will be responsible for building on the success of Manulife's China operations and maximizing the business opportunities for MSL. She holds an MBA degree from the Columbia Business School in the United States.
Mr. Mills and Ms Zhang will report to Michael Huddart, Manulife's Executive Vice President and General Manager for Greater China. Mr. Huddart will continue to spearhead the company's strategic growth development in the region. He will remain as Chairman of MSL, Manulife Asset Management (Hong Kong) Limited, Manulife Asset Management (Taiwan) Co., Ltd., and Vice Chairman of Manulife TEDA Fund Management Co., Ltd., which is Manulife's joint venture asset management company in China. He will also continue to sit on a number of Boards of the Manulife group of companies.
Roy Gori, President and Chief Executive Officer of Manulife Asia, commented on the new appointments: "With such high-calibre and experienced management executives joining our senior management team, coupled with the continued strong leadership of Michael Huddart, we are well positioned to further expand our business in these important markets of the region."
About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group providing forward-thinking solutions to help people with their big financial decisions. We operate as John Hancock in the United States, and Manulife elsewhere. We provide financial advice, insurance and wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2014, we had 28,000 employees, 58,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving 20 million customers. At the end of September 2015, we had C$888 billion (HK$5,138 billion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made more than C$23 billion in benefits, interest and other payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 100 years. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong. Follow Manulife on Twitter @ManulifeNews or visit www.manulife.com or www.johnhancock.com.
Media Contact:
| Hong Kong: |
China: |
| Asia: |
|
*subject to regulatory approval
Photo - http://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20160201/8521600654-a
Photo - http://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20160201/8521600654-b
