British insurance giant Aviva has set its sights on expansion outside the UK with a key hire.
Chetan Singh, a managing director from JPMorgan, will now become the head of Aviva’s
mergers and acquisitions globally. According to a
Bloomberg report Singh will report to chief financial officer Tom Stoddard and will relocate to London from Singapore.
The move is part of CEO Mark Wilson’s ongoing reshaping of the company – with a host of acquisitions and asset sales having taken place since 2013. Of particular note was its decision to purchase Friends Life Group last year – which, valued at $8 billion, was the biggest UK insurance deal for 15 years. Speaking in October, Wilson outlined his plans for the business to secure smaller deals as it looks to further its expansion beyond the UK.
As for Singh, his move from JPMorgan is also significant as he is the third Southeast Asia dealmaker to leave the company this year. JPMorgan Singapore investment bank head Yeo Hong Ping left the firm to join Fullerton Financial Holdings back in July; while head of Malaysia investment banking Didi Yahya departed the company back in May.
Acquisition activity in the region is also slowing down according to
Bloomberg. Takeovers featuring Southeast Asian companies have dropped to $47 billion this year – that’s a slump from $72.9 billion during the same period in 2015.
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