NEW YORK, April 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- National
Financial Partners Corp. (NYSE: NFP), a leading provider of
benefits, insurance and wealth management services, today announced
that it has begun to implement a management succession plan.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100920/NY67494LOGO
)
Jessica M. Bibliowicz, Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer, has informed the NFP Board of
Directors that she is stepping down as President, effective
immediately, and intends to step down as CEO at the end of the
first quarter in 2013. The Board has asked her to become the
non-executive Chairman at such time. Ms. Bibliowicz has
served as NFP's President and CEO since joining the Company in
April 1999. She has also served as a director since
June 1999 and as Chairman since June
2003.
Douglas W. Hammond, currently
Chief Operating Officer, has been named NFP's President, effective
immediately. He will continue to serve as Chief Operating
Officer and is expected to become CEO in April 2013.
Commenting on today's announcements, Ms. Bibliowicz said, "We
have accomplished a great deal at NFP over the past thirteen
years. With a strong team leading our core businesses, a
clear strategy and sound financial position, NFP is well positioned
for continued growth. Now is the right time for us to begin
the implementation of a smooth year-long leadership
transition."
Ms. Bibliowicz continued, "Doug has been with NFP since its
inception, serving in various key management positions. As
our Chief Operating Officer since 2008, he has been instrumental in
defining and implementing our strategy, including the
reorganization of our business into client-centric segments, our
balanced capital allocation approach, our focus on recurring
revenues and our transition to a more unified brand. He
is a proven leader with a deep understanding of our core
businesses. We are confident that under Doug's leadership,
our talented senior management team will build on NFP's strengths
and shareholder value by continuing to provide exceptional service
to our clients."
Also commenting, Kenneth C.
Mlekush, Lead Independent Director said, "Jessica has done a
tremendous job and we have all benefited from her leadership.
Today, we are implementing the Board's long-term succession plan,
which was developed with external experts to ensure that our
process was complete and thorough. We concluded that naming
Doug as President and expected CEO was the right decision for
NFP."
Mr. Hammond said, "It has been a privilege to work under
Jessica's leadership and with the entire NFP team to build NFP into
a leader in benefits, insurance and wealth management. I am
excited about the opportunities that lie ahead as we continue to
deliver on our strategic and operational goals. With the
exceptional talent throughout NFP and our strong client focused
culture, we are confident that NFP is well positioned to build on
the strong foundation we built."
Mr. Hammond, 46, has served as Chief Operating Officer of NFP
since 2008. Prior to that role, he served as NFP's Executive
Vice President and General Counsel from 2004 to 2008 and as NFP's
Executive Vice President and Deputy General Counsel from 2002 to
2004. Before joining NFP in 1999, Mr. Hammond was an attorney
with the law firm currently known as Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP,
where he specialized in corporate insurance and regulatory
matters and represented NFP's capital sponsor prior to and
during the formation of the Company. He also held various
business and legal positions in the financial institutions
division of Gulf Insurance Group, Inc., a specialty lines insurance
company. Mr. Hammond serves on the Advisory Board of Trustees
of the Dolan School of Business of Fairfield University. He
received his B.A. from Fairfield
University and J.D. from St. John's
University School of Law.
About NFP
National Financial Partners Corp. (NYSE: NFP), and its
benefits, insurance and wealth management businesses provide
diversified advisory and brokerage services to companies and high
net worth individuals, partnering with them to preserve their
assets and prosper over the long term. NFP advisors provide
innovative and comprehensive solutions, backed by NFP's national
scale and resources. NFP operates in three business segments. The
Corporate Client Group provides corporate and executive benefits,
retirement plans and property and casualty insurance. The
Individual Client Group includes retail and wholesale life
insurance brokerage and wealth management advisory services. The
Advisor Services Group serves independent financial advisors by
offering broker-dealer and asset management products and services.
Most recently, NFP was ranked as the eighth Top Global Insurance
Broker by Best's Review; operated the fourth largest Executive
Benefits Provider of nonqualified deferred compensation plans
administered for recordkeeping clients as ranked by PlanSponsor;
operated a top ten Independent Broker Dealer as ranked by Financial
Planning and Financial Advisor; had three advisors ranked in
Barron's Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors and is a leading
independent life insurance distributor according to many top-tier
carriers. For more information, visit www.nfp.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains statements which are forward-looking
statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include,
without limitation, any statement that may project, indicate or
imply future results, events, performance or achievements, and may
contain the words "anticipate," "expect," "intend," "plan,"
"believe," "estimate," "may," "project," "will," "continue" and
similar expressions of a future or forward-looking nature.
Forward-looking statements may include discussions concerning
revenue, expenses, earnings, cash flow, impairments, losses,
dividends, capital structure, market and industry conditions,
premium and commission rates, interest rates, contingencies, the
direction or outcome of regulatory investigations and litigation,
income taxes and the Company's operations or strategy. These
forward-looking statements are based on management's current views
with respect to future results. Forward-looking statements are
based on beliefs and assumptions made by management using
currently-available information, such as market and industry
materials, experts' reports and opinions, and current financial
trends. These statements are only predictions and are not
guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements are
subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results
to differ materially from those contemplated by a forward-looking
statement. These risks and uncertainties include, without
limitation: (1) the ability of the Company to execute on its
strategy of increasing recurring revenue and other business
initiatives; (2) NFP's ability, through its operating structure, to
respond quickly to operational, financial or regulatory situations
impacting its businesses; (3) the ability of the Company's
businesses to perform successfully following acquisition, including
through the diversification of product and service offerings, and
NFP's ability to manage its business effectively and profitably
through its principals and employees and through the Company's
reportable segments; (4) any losses that NFP may take with
respect to dispositions, restructures or otherwise;
(5) seasonality or an economic environment that results in
fewer sales of financial products or services; (6) NFP's
success in acquiring and retaining high-quality independent
financial services businesses and their managers and key producers;
(7) changes in premiums and commission rates or the rates of
other fees paid to the Company's businesses, due to requirements
related to medical loss ratios stemming from the Patient Protection
and Affordable Care Act or otherwise; (8) NFP's ability to
operate effectively within the restrictive covenants of its credit
facility; (9) changes that adversely affect NFP's ability to
manage its indebtedness or capital structure, including changes in
interest rates or credit market conditions; (10) the impact of
capital markets behavior, such as fluctuations in the price of
NFP's common stock, or the dilutive impact of capital raising
efforts; (11) adverse results or other consequences from
matters including litigation, arbitration, settlements, regulatory
investigations or compliance initiatives, such as those related to
business practices, compensation agreements with insurance
companies, policy rescissions or chargebacks, or activities within
the life settlements industry; (12) the impact of legislation
or regulations on NFP's businesses, such as the possible adoption
of exclusive federal regulation over interstate insurers, the
uncertain impact of legislation regulating the financial services
industry, such as the recent Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and
Consumer Protection Act, the impact of the adoption of the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act and resulting changes in
business practices, potential changes in estate tax laws, or
changes in regulations affecting the value or use of benefits
programs, any of which may adversely affect the demand for or
profitability of the Company's services; (13) adverse
developments in the Company's markets, such as those related to
compensation agreements with insurance companies or activities
within the life settlements industry, which could result in
decreased sales of financial products or services; (14) the
effectiveness or financial impact of NFP's incentive plans;
(15) the impact of the adoption or change in interpretation of
certain accounting treatments or policies and changes in underlying
assumptions relating to such treatments or policies, which may lead
to adverse financial statement results; (16) the loss of
services of key members of senior management; (17) failure by the
Company's broker-dealers to comply with net capital requirements;
(18) the Company's ability to compete against competitors with
greater resources, such as those with greater name recognition;
(19) developments in the availability, pricing, design, tax
treatment or underwriting of insurance products, including
insurance carriers' potential change in accounting for deferred
acquisition costs, revisions in mortality tables by life expectancy
underwriters or changes in the Company's relationships with
insurance companies; (20) the reduction of the Company's
revenue and earnings due to the elimination or modification of
compensation arrangements, including contingent compensation
arrangements and the adoption of internal initiatives to enhance
compensation transparency, including the transparency of fees paid
for life settlements transactions; (21) the occurrence of
adverse economic conditions or an adverse legal or regulatory
climate in New York, Florida or California; and (22) the Company's
ability to effect smooth succession planning.
Additional factors are set forth in NFP's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including its
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011, filed with the SEC on
February 13, 2012.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which
they are made. NFP expressly disclaims any obligation to update or
revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
SOURCE NFP