Sompo names Shea CEO of new Sompo P&C segment

By Rebecca Delaney

Feb 14 - (The Insurer) - Sompo has unveiled a restructure of its business into two global segments: Sompo P&C and Sompo Wellbeing.

The new Sompo P&C brand combines Sompo International Holdings' insurance and reinsurance business with its Japan commercial and consumer P&C operations.

Sompo P&C will be lead by James Shea, who has served as CEO of Sompo International since late 2021.

Shea will continue to lead the overseas (re)insurance business, reporting to Sompo Group CEO Mikio Okumura.

Sompo Japan and the overseas business together represent in excess of $30 billion in gross written premium, with a global portfolio made up of commercial (51 percent), consumer (35 percent) and reinsurance (14 percent) business.

Within the new business structure, which takes effect on 1 April, Koji Ishikawa will continue in his role as CEO of Sompo Japan, now reporting to Shea.

Kenneth Reilly's responsibilities as chief executive officer of insurance for Asia Pacific will now include those of deputy CEO of Sompo Japan, commercial insurance.

Nicolas Burnet will assume the role of group deputy chief financial officer at Sompo Holdings, as well as CFO for Sompo P&C. In this role, he will help to oversee the global investment strategy for Sompo, as well as capital allocation, investor relations and M&A, reporting to Shea and Masahiro Hamada, group CFO.

The second global business segment, Sompo Wellbeing, will include the life insurance business, Sompo Himawari Life Insurance, and Sompo Care, the nursing services business in Japan.

Sompo Wellbeing will be focused on creating products and services to address challenges related to health, financial stability after retirement, and nursing care needs, particularly as Japan faces an ageing population and declining birth rate.

Yasuhiro Oba, currently CEO of Sompo Himawari Life Insurance, will become CEO of Sompo Wellbeing, reporting to Okumura.

Within the Sompo Wellbeing business, Yasuki Kume will become CEO of Sompo Himawari Life Insurance, while Takamitsu Washimi will continue as CEO of Sompo Care.

Commenting on the new structure, Okumura said: “Sompo Group is taking the next step towards (its) goal of becoming a truly global financial institution born in Japan. By creating our Sompo P&C and Sompo Wellbeing global business segments, we will deliver a sustainable platform that meets the needs of all our stakeholders.”

Shea added: “This structural change is part of our ongoing evolution to remain resilient amid economic changes. It will simplify our business, allowing us to continue to foster deeper connections and alignment across geographies, deliver profitable results to our shareholders and create the best place to work in our industry.”

Earlier on Friday, Sompo International reported that its commercial P&C combined ratio had deteriorated by 1.3 percentage points year on year to 93.7 percent during the first nine months of its fiscal year.

The division’s commercial P&C operations, built out through its Japanese parent’s 2016 acquisition of Bermudian (re)insurer Endurance, reported GWP of $12.46 billion for the first nine months of 2024, marking an increase of $542mn year on year.