He will be succeeded in July by Rachel Lewis the current CFO of Admiral’s UK insurance business
Geraint Jones.(Image: Matthew Horwood)
Car insurance to loans group and Wales’ only FTSE 100 company, Admiral Group, has announced its chief financial officer (CFO) Geraint Jones is to retire from his role. Mr Jones has been with Admiral for 24 years and a part of the group’s executive leadership team and an executive director of the Admiral Group board since 2014.
He has played a key role in the group’s transformation into a leading personal lines insurer and growing its market capitalisation from £3.7bn to £9.6bn He has also been integral to its consistently strong financial performance and operational discipline as its customer base has grown to 11 million.
He will transition to a part-time role within the group from July and will be succeed by Rachel Lewis, who is currently CFO for Admiral’s UK insurance business and a director of the UK entity’s board, Her appointment, which will see her join the group board, is subject to regulatory approval and follows a thorough internal and external recruitment process.
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Rachel Lewis of Admiral.(Image: )
Ms Lewis has been with Admiral for two decades and has extensive experience in financial strategy, disciplined cost management and driving growth. Prior to her current role, she was the group’s chief actuary and group finance director.
Mr Jones said; “Admiral is a special company and I feel really proud to have been part of the team that has shaped it into one of the UK’s leading personal lines insurers and consumer finance providers. I’ve had the privilege of working for every Admiral CEO. While the business has changed a lot over the years, our culture and focus on doing the right thing for customers have remained constant
” I will massively miss working with my colleagues every day but delighted that Rachel, who I have worked with for many years and knows the group well, will be taking over from me in the summer. I look forward to being able to support my colleagues in July and beyond in a different capacity.”
Incoming group CFO Ms Lewis said: “I’m honoured to be stepping into the role of group CFO. I have grown with the business and seen first-hand the talent and ambition that defines our colleagues. I’m grateful for the counsel and support that Geraint has given me over the years and excited to step into a new role to support our strategic ambitions, delivering further growth through customer excellence.”
Chief executive, Milena Mondini di Focatiis, said: “Both the group and I have benefitted greatly from Geraint’s wise counsel as CFO. During his tenure we have almost tripled our customer base and he has helped ensure that we have grown in a sustainable way. He is a valued colleague and friend to so many of us. On behalf of everyone at Admiral, I would like to thank him for his dedication to the group, our customers, and our colleagues.
“We have a strong track record of succession planning, and I am pleased that we can promote from within for such an important role. Rachel has great commercial finance experience and a deep knowledge of our business which makes her the best person to lead our finance function.”
Admiral’s chair, Mike Rogers,said: “On behalf of the board, I would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Geraint who has been instrumental in helping to guide the company through a period of consistent and sustainable growth. Geraint is a highly respected leader and we are pleased that he will remain with the group. We are grateful for the structures and talented team he will leave behind and look forward to working even more closely with Rachel.
