RenaissanceRe CEO resigns

James N. Stanard resigned as chair and CEO of RenaissanceRe in light of ongoing regulatory investigations resulting from the company’s restatement of its financial results earlier this year, the company has announced.
Stanard received a “Wells Notice” from the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission in August. Under the SEC’s procedures, a Wells Notice indicates SEC staff intends to recommend that the SEC bring a civil enforcement action against a company, alleging violations of federal securities laws. The recipient of a Wells Notice has an opportunity to respond.
RenaissanceRe said it is continuing to cooperate with regulators on these investigations.
In the meantime, the company has appointed Neill A. Currie as CEO and W. James MacGinnitie as non-executive chairman. These appointments are effective immediately.
“The Board has been monitoring this situation very closely and has concluded that at this point it is best for our company, our people and our shareholders to begin to put this matter behind us,” said Mr. MacGinnitie in a press release. “Jim has worked tirelessly to build this company into an industry leader, and has assembled a first-rate team.”
Currie, 52, re-joined the company as executive vice president on July 5, 2005. He was once responsible for marketing and client relations, and thereafter assumed responsibility for the company’s specialty reinsurance business. He was a co-founder of RenaissanceRe in 1993 and served as a senior vice president through 1997.
MacGinnitie, 67, has served as a member of the company’s board of directors since February 2000 and is an independent actuary and consultant. Prior to that, he served as senior vice president and chief financial Officer of CNA Financial from 1997 to 1999.