Ingrid Johnson (pictured above) has been appointed Sun Life Asia president, succeeding Léo Grépin, who left the insurer on Oct. 15 to pursue other opportunities.

Johnson will be responsible for one of the insurer’s fastest-growing regions. Sun Life is present in the life and health insurance and wealth management industries in eight Asian markets – China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam.

“We’re excited that Ingrid is joining Sun Life. She brings significant leadership experience and deep international expertise in insurance and financial services,” said Kevin Strain, president and CEO of Sun Life Financial. “Ingrid will continue to foster growth and build scale in our Asia businesses where we are focused on providing protection, health and wealth management solutions to clients in the fast-growing middle class and high net worth markets. We thank Léo for his many contributions to Sun Life over the years and wish him well in the future.”

Johnson has more than 25 years of international experience in the insurance and financial services industries. She was most recently group finance director of Old Mutual and a member of its various subsidiary boards. During her time at Old Mutual, Johnson played a significant role in the restructuring and delisting of the £12 billion group into four fully independent, listed entities. She spent 21 years at Nedbank Group, a subsidiary of Old Mutual, holding several progressively senior roles in governance, finance, treasury, risk and capital management.

Hailing from Johannesburg, South Africa, Johnson is a chartered accountant and holds bachelor’s degrees in commerce and accounting from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa. She also completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

“I’m delighted to be joining Sun Life… and I look forward to working with the talented leaders, partners, advisors and their teams in accelerating Sun Life’s transformational impact in Asia,” Johnson said. “I am thrilled to be a part of this next exciting phase of Sun Life’s global contribution to helping clients achieve lifetime financial security and live healthier lives.”