Manulife Asia announces leadership overhaul

Phil Witherington will assume the role of President and CEO of Manulife on 9 May.

Manulife Asia announced its latest leadership changes, revealing three new CEO appointments.

Kah Siang Khoo, currently CEO of Manulife Singapore, will become CEO of Emerging Markets, overseeing Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and the Philippines. 

Since joining in 2018, he has led double-digit growth in APE, NBV, and CE and strengthened Manulife’s bancassurance partnership with DBS. 

He will continue as CEO of Singapore until 1 June, when he hands over the role to Benoit Meslet – now CEO of Manulife Japan.

Since joining in 2020, Meslet has led four consecutive years of core earnings growth, doubled New Business Value since 2022, and driven digital transformation, the insurer said.

Ryan Charland, CEO of Manulife Indonesia, will become CEO of Japan on 1 May. 

He will move to Japan in April to work with Meslet on the transition. 

Charland, who has led Manulife Indonesia since 2019, has expanded market share and launched a Syariah company to serve the Muslim population.  

Lauren Sulistiawati will become CEO of Indonesia on 24 February, pending regulatory approval. 

She will work with Charland during the transition and report to Khoo. 

Sulistiawati joins from Commonwealth Bank, where she led its transition to OCBC and previously held leadership roles in Indonesian and multinational banks.  

Adrienne O’Neill, currently Global Controller and Group Chief Accounting Officer, has been named Asia Chief Financial Officer. 

She will report to Global CFO Colin Simpson and Manulife Asia CEO Phil Witherington. O’Neill has been with Manulife for over 17 years, including serving as Global head of Investor Relations from 2018 to 2021.  

As part of these changes, Michael Thomssen, CFO of Asia, and Sachin Shah, head of Emerging Markets, will leave Manulife.  

Phil Witherington will assume the role of President and CEO of Manulife on 9 May. Until a successor is named, Manulife Asia’s senior leadership team will report to him.