Willis Re Australia appoints Deputy CEO

Willis Re, the reinsurance division of Willis Towers Watson, has announced that John Philipsz has been appointed as deputy CEO of Willis Re Australia, effective immediately.

Philipsz joins from Willis Towers Watson Securities where he has served as co-head of Asia Pacific since 2016 after launching the firm's Sydney office in 2015. Before this, he held various roles at Merrill Lynch and Bank of America in London, New York and Tokyo.

Philipsz is one of two new appointees to Willis Re's Australian leadership team, with Karl Jones, head of catastrophe analytics for Willis Re International, relocating from London to Sydney in the first quarter of 2019.

Commenting on both appointments, Cameron Green, CEO of Willis Re Australia, said: "The addition of John and Karl to the Willis Re team in Australia will strengthen our operations in the Australian market to drive our next phase of growth."

Mark Morley, head of Willis Re, Asia Pacific, added: "Both John and Karl will also be part of the regional team and be involved in various initiatives to expand and grow our business in the Asia Pacific region."

Leaving the Australian team is Warren Dresner, head of broking for Willis Re Australia, who will relocate to Miami as a senior member of Willis Re's Latin American business, with the move anticipated to take place in the third quarter of 2019. The transition of his current responsibilities has commenced, the firm said, with "further talent investment in the business expected to be made shortly".