Former Zurich Insurance CEO Martin Senn kills himself

[mia]

Source: U.S. News & World Report

Switzerland's Zurich Insurance Group says former chief executive Martin Senn, who ran the company for six years until last December, has killed himself. The incident comes three years after the company's then-chief financial officer also killed himself....

Expressing its "great shock and sadness," Zurich Insurance said in a brief statement Monday that "his family informed us that Martin took his life last Friday." The company said it would not be making any further comment, "out of respect to Martin and to his family."

Senn, a Swiss national, was 59. He departed as CEO at the end of last year, saying that there had been "some setbacks in recent months" but the company was in good shape.

Three years ago, Zurich's then chief financial officer, Pierre Wauthier, killed himself. Two independent probes directed by Swiss regulators found no indication that he had been subject to undue pressure by decision-makers at the company....


Read more: http://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2016-05-30/former-zurich-insurance-ceo-martin-senn-kills-himself

[Ilsa]

1. 2 suicides. Huh.

This doesn't make much sense to me. I'm a bit skeptical of this cause of death.

[MariaThinks]

2. very suspicious

[Liberal_in_LA]

18. Very very suspicious

[valerief]

5. A couple of those "two bullets to the head" suicides, I imagine. This is big money here. nt

[bucolic_frolic]

3. Hope the families

had lots of insurance

[Hoppy]

4. I can assure you without hesitation, they are better off than yours or my family would be in

case of our demise.

[Hiraeth]

6. *blink*blink*

[rachael7]

7. Jump f**kers, jump

Sounds like the shit got too deep for those two. Good riddance.

[Moostache]

9. My first thought too...

Its a shame more bankers don't do the same.
There is a surplus of useless vermin in that industry that would require entire months of constant suicides to get back to a sustainable level. Of all the professions on this planet, "bank executive" is the one that should be as admirable as "peep-show booth cleaner".

[bucolic_frolic]

17. CEO Lemmings?

[Thor_MN]

8. Looks like they need more insurance execs.

Maybe they could start a visa program to bring foreign execs in to do the work.

[Francis Booth]

10. I wish more of our Corporate leaders had the common decency

Last edited Mon May 30, 2016, 03:17 PM - Edit history (1)

to do this. Especially those responsible for selling millions of our jobs to the lowest bidder, which is kind of a death sentence itself.

[Odin2005]

22. Some Japanese executives have been known to commit Seppukku after a fuck-up.

[Francis Booth]

24. Yes, I'd heard that. There was actually a lovely park

somewhere in Tokyo that was a popular spot where disgraced company men would go to do the deed.

[Xolodno]

11. This company owns....

Not only Zurich North America, but Farmers Insurance as well. Farmers in turn owns Foremost, Bristol West and 21st Century (which I hear is being converted to Farmers).

[bucolic_frolic]

16. European Insurance and Banking

are always crossing the Atlantic and starting companies

or maybe it's their brothers-in-law

Arizona based VOYA now a spinoff of ING

I used to have Farmers. Every year the premiums went UP. They
were cheap in the beginning. The same cars, driven fewer and fewer miles
with no collision and the premiums rise.

I finally ditched them.

I think they all do the same: once they think you're content, they jack up the price

Constantly review your insurance prices. I had a multi-line agent, only reviewed every
10 years it seems.

Always shop around. When it's new business, they'll do a lot for you to get the business.
After that, you're a cash cow to them.

[Xolodno]

19. I work in the industry and have some insight on that....

...its always the same cycle.

Company is stable, profitable and growing...albeit slowly. Rates aren't the lowest, but aren't the highest either...but because there are no major price swings, policyholders stick around. Then someone who was responsible for all that, retires. Then someone else gets a wild hair up their ass and says "we should replace him with someone who is talented at growth!!!".

So they do a search for exec's on other companies having phenomenal "growth". They recruit them, he gives a good pitch and then hire them. Then the exec, without any strategy, against the actuaries recommendations, directs massive rate cuts (and the state DOI doesn't pay attention as you never hear complaints about low rates from policyholders). Then one of three outcomes happen:

1. The exec gets "recruited" just as the losses start to catch up. Leaving the successor to restore profitability with huge rate increases.

2. Company goes under.

3. Exec doesn't get "recruited" in time and gets fired and his gig is up. And the successor is forced to restore profitability.

Once the company is stable (assuming #2 doesn't happen) it stays that way for awhile....then down the line the cycle repeats.

[Oneironaut]

12. Hope their families find peace.

[bluedigger]

13. No actuary would have predicted that.

[Ford_Prefect]

14. You do wonder what he knew, that perhaps we should know too, that he died in such a way.

Was he was overwhelmed by that knowledge? Perhaps those with an interest in keeping it hidden helped him along? Did he do this out of personal doubts, or to protect his family, or his associates?

[Xolodno]

15. When the CFO commited suicide, he blamed the the chairman Josef Ackermann.

The guy is a piece of work. Prior to joining Zurich:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/9302977/Josef-Ackermann-ends-turbulent-decade-at-Deutsche-Bank.html

While for many Germans, Ackermann personifies the arrogance and greed of the banking sector, he is widely respected in financial sectors for transforming Deutsche Bank into a truly global player during his 10 years in office.

Its reputation has become somewhat sullied in recent years by a string of different legal battles, but also perceptions that some of its areas of activity - such as foodstuffs speculation and business ties with makers of cluster munitions - were not always ethically acceptable.

After Zurich, he went to the Bank of Cypruss:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/27/business/dealbook/josef-ackermann-sees-his-role-in-cyprus-as-a-chance-to-give-back.html?_r=0

NICOSIA, Cyprus — The Swiss banker Josef Ackermann played a role in the events that nearly destroyed the Cyprus banking system in 2013. Now he was back in this sleepy capital, toiling to fix one of the very banks he helped undermine.

Redemption, said Mr. Ackermann, the former Deutsche Bank chief, would be too strong a word to describe why he, once one of the most powerful bankers in the world, agreed to be chairman of the Bank of Cyprus — the Mediterranean island’s largest lender, but puny in global terms.

Makes you wonder, what turd did this guy leave at Zurich......

[elleng]

20. 'a truly global player,'

just what we DON'T want!

[Odin2005]

21. Meh, no sympathy for a useless capitaliost exploiter.

JUMP YOU FUCKERS.

[Tab]

23. I had been a customer of Zurich for years

Then a few months before the end of 1999 they abruptly cancelled our business insurance because of thieir concern of the Y2K bug, and so all software companies got the axe. This left us with no insurance going into 2000.

We eventually got offers to go back to Zurich but I turned them down.

Insurance companies are all fine and helpful until they feel threatened.

I don't know this guy (he joined after they booted us) but I have no love for Zurich insurance in general.