Ted Mathas to Succeed Sy Sternberg as Chairman of New York Life

New York Life's (New York) board of directors has named Ted Mathas as the company's new chairman of the board, effective June 1. Mathas will succeed Sy Sternberg, 65, New York Life's chairman since April 1, 1997, who completes the longest tenure of any New York Life chairman since the position was established in 1931. Mathas, 41, has served as New York Life's president since July 2007 and chief executive officer since July 2008. He will retain both titles upon assuming the chairman's role in June. "Ted is an excellent president and CEO. He is a leader in every sense of the word, and the time is right for Ted to assume the additional role of chairman of the board," says Sternberg. "Since joining us in 1995 Ted has contributed to every part of New York Life, making us more innovative and responsive to customer needs. The Company's sales of life insurance and annuity products have soared under his leadership, and public confidence in New York Life has never been greater. We are fortunate to have a leader of Ted's judgment, energy, intellect and vision to serve in these capacities."

Mathas will be the 13th chairman of New York Life since the position was established in 1931. He has been a director of the company since July 2006. He is currently president and chief executive officer, responsible for running all aspects of the company, including all domestic and international business operations. The domestic business includes life insurance, retirement income security, investments, long-term care insurance and related businesses, as well as the company's career agency system. The international business includes operations in eight markets located in Asia and Latin America.

In addition to New York Life's board, Mathas serves on the board of the American Council of Life Insurers.

Mathas joined New York Life in June 1995 as an officer in the asset management Department. He became president of Eagle Strategies Corp., a registered investment subsidiary, in September 1996. In May 1997, Mathas assumed the additional position of President of NYLIFE Securities Inc., a retail broker-dealer subsidiary. He was promoted to senior vice president in September 1998, and in June 1999, he became chief operating officer in the carrier's agency department. He became chief operating officer for life and annuity in April 2001 and was elected executive vice president in January 2004, when he was named co-head of U.S. Insurance Operations. Effective July 1, 2006, Mathas became chief operating officer and was elected a member of the company's board of directors with the title of vice chairman of the board. He was elected president of New York Life effective July 1, 2007 and chief executive officer effective July 1, 2008. Mathas graduated with an A.B. from Stanford University, with distinction, in 1989. He received a J.D. from the University of Virginia in 1992, where he was a member of the Virginia Law Review and the Order of the Coif. He and his wife, Keryn, live in Armonk, New York, with their three children.

Anthony O'Donnell has covered technology in the insurance industry since 2000, when he joined the editorial staff of Insurance & Technology. As an editor and reporter for I&T and the InformationWeek Financial Services of TechWeb he has written on all areas of information ... View Full Bio