Big hitter shows belief in Scottish mutual

THE man appointed to become the next chief executive of Scottish Friendly has underlined his confidence in the prospects for the savings and investment business.

Stephen Mcgee will take up the post at the Glasgow-based mutual in April. He has been chief financial officer of Edinburgh-based financial services heavyweight Aegon UK since 2016.

Mr Mcgee will succeed Martin Pringle, who became chief executive of Scottish Friendly in April following the death of Jim Galbraith.

“It is a great honour to be appointed the next CEO of Scottish Friendly,” said Mr Mcgee.

“I have known the organisation for some time and have always greatly admired its innovation, pace and commitment to a coherent and successful vision and purpose repeatedly articulated to me by Jim Galbraith over the years.”

Mr Mcgee said he looked forward to working with the team to build on a record year of sales for the business and continue the success story that is Scottish Friendly.

The business grew sales by around 10 per cent in 2020, to £42 million on the standard industry measure, up from £37.8m in the preceding year.

Member numbers reached a record high of 745,000 in 2020, up from 712,000 in the preceding year, leaving the business administering more than one million policies.

Mr Mcgee has also served as chief actuary at Lloyds Banking Group and head of actuarial at Phoenix Group.

The chair of Scottish Friendly, David Huntley, said Mr Mcgee offered a unique combination of drive, enthusiasm, experience and knowledge and would provide expert leadership for the business.

He thanked Mr Pringle for providing the steady leadership needed during an incredibly difficult time.

Jim Ewing will succeed Mr Mcgee as chief financial officer of Aegon UK. Mr Ewing has been chief risk officer at Aegon UK since 2014.