One of Britain's longest-serving chief executives will step down this year when Aviva's Richard Harvey retires early after almost a decade in charge, to be succeeded in July by current finance director Andrew Moss.
Mr Moss, who joined Aviva in 2004 from insurance market Lloyd's, will be replaced at the financial controls by Philip Scott, an Aviva veteran currently in charge of its North American and Asian operations.
"The company is in great shape, and it is a logical time to hand over the wheel," Harvey said in a telephone interview. "I've got an extremely strong team around me, and therefore we were able to have a very orderly succession process."
Mr Harvey turns (57) in July and had hinted he could retire before 60, but speculation on possible candidates for the top job had centred around Aviva's operational executives including Scott, UK head Patrick Snowball, and even high-flier Tidjane Thiam, who leads its European operations.
Mr Moss worked at bank HSBC before Lloyd's and has less life insurance experience than internal rivals for the chief executive job. However, at (48) he is also younger than veterans Mr Snowball (56) and Scott (53) who could have faced early retirement questions within a few years.
Analysts said Harvey's retirement came earlier than expected, but said the six-month handover would ensure a smooth transition, adding the change could mean a period of calm at Aviva, frequently at the centre of acquisition speculation.