MetLife Inc. Chairman Robert Benmosche has announced plans to retire next spring.[@@]
MetLife’s directors have elected C. Robert Henrikson, the company’s president and chief operating officer, to succeed Benmosche. MetLife directors also have appointed Henrikson to the board.
The MetLife board has been planning for Benmosche’s retirement for more than a year, and it settled on his successor in February after considering a number of internal and external candidates, MetLife says.
Benmosche, who will turn 61 next month, assumed his current positions in 1998. He led MetLife through a massive demutualization, and he negotiated the recent acquisition of Travelers Life & Annuity from Citigroup Inc., New York, for $11.5 billion. MetLife hopes to close on the Travelers Life deal this summer.