Exclusive: AIG former Northeast zonal president Reiss exits

By James Thaler

March 17 - (The Insurer) - AIG’s former Northeast zonal president Steve Reiss is exiting the insurer two years after joining from WTW, where he had been corporate risk and broking leader for the Northeast region.

Multiple carrier and broking sources have confirmed that Reiss resigned from his position with AIG on Friday, with the executive linked with a move to join a number of former Chubb colleagues at Everest.

Reiss spent most of his two-year AIG tenure as Northeast zone president before transitioning to broker and market executive at the beginning of this year.

Before joining AIG in January 2023, he spent four years with WTW, 13 years with Chubb, 15 years with Marsh and three years previously with AIG at the outset of his career. At Chubb, he spent two years as real estate and hospitality practice leader and was previously COO for Continental Europe.

At Marsh he was a managing director.

EVEREST'S CHUBB RECRUITMENT

Former Chubb executive Jim Williamson was named Everest’s new permanent CEO in January, following the abrupt exit of Everest CEO Juan Andrade weeks earlier, who left to become the new CEO of military family insurer USAA.

During Andrade and Williamson’s tenures the company has brought in a significant number of former Chubb colleagues.

In January, The Insurer broke the news that Chubb’s longtime North America head of excess casualty major accounts Joe Fobert was joining the company, in what ultimately turned out to be a casualty reinsurance role.

About a year ago, Chubb’s North America head of industry practices Bill Hazelton resigned after a long tenure with the company, only to re-emerge two weeks later as the head of U.S. retail casualty at Everest.

Hazelton was subsequently named the president of North America insurance, after Everest parted ways with his predecessor in the role, Mike Mulray.

Everest also recruited the chief insurance officer and co-founder of construction-focused insurtech Shepherd, Stephen Buonpane, last May, bringing aboard another executive who worked with Hazelton at Chubb.

Buonpane was initially named the head of specialty casualty before being promoted to lead Everest’s U.S. wholesale and programs business in August 2024.

AIG declined to comment and Everest did not immediately respond to a request for comment.