AmMetLife CEO to lead AIG Korea

Ramzi Toubassy / Courtesy of AIG Korea

By Park Jae-hyuk

Ramzi Toubassy, chief executive of AmMetLife Insurance Berhad in Malaysia, has been appointed the new president and CEO of AIG Korea, the local unit of American International Group (AIG) said Monday.

The announcement came after the global insurance giant's Korean subsidiary approved his appointment during an extraordinary shareholders meeting, Feb. 23, and the severance pay given to outgoing CEO Douglas Min during another shareholders meeting on the following day.

According to AIG Korea, Toubassy will join the company April 1, a day after the planned retirement of Min, who joined the company in 2014 and became its CEO in 2018 after working for Swiss Reinsurance, General Reinsurance and Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance.

The new chief executive also has more than 24 years of experience in the insurance industry.

He began his career with AIG in New York, serving in senior leadership roles in the U.S., Lebanon, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

He also worked as the deputy general manager and director of distribution at AIA Korea, before he became the head of AmMetLife, a joint venture between Malaysia's AmBank Group and the U.S.-headquartered MetLife, in 2014. AIA was once an AIG subsidiary, but it was spun off after the group's restructuring during the 2008-09 global financial crisis.

“I am pleased to welcome Ramzi back to AIG in the role of president and CEO of AIG Korea,” AIG's Asia-Pacific CEO Steven Barnett said. “We have a proud history in Korea and Ramzi's appointment reinforces the importance of this market to AIG. Ramzi's deep industry expertise, combined with his proven track record of developing strong distribution channels and partnerships, will be great assets as we continue to drive this dynamic and important business forward.”

Toubassy said, “As the first international insurer in Korea, AIG is deeply respected in the industry. I am honored to lead the talented team at AIG and look forward to returning to Korea to drive the strategic direction of the business and deliver differentiated value to our partners and customers.”