APRA Executive Board Member Geoff Summerhayes Named as New Chair of the Sustainable Insurance Forum
Mr. Geoff Summerhayes, Executive Board Member at the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, has been named the new Chair of the Sustainable Insurance Forum (SIF). Mr. Summerhayes succeeds Commissioner Dave Jones of the California Department of Insurance, who served as Chair from the launch of the SIF in December 2016 to the end of January 2018. Commissioner Jones was instrumental in guiding the work of the Forum during its first phase, including the release of the SIF’s joint statement in support of the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures recommendations, the SIF’s global stock-take publication of supervisory and regulatory action on sustainability issues, and its engagement with the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) on climate change topics.
Going forward, Mr. Summerhayes will advance the work of the SIF across its work programme areas, with a specific focus on joint activities on climate change in collaboration with the IAIS. In 2017 Mr. Summerhayes played an important role in motivating the IAIS to apply greater focus on climate and sustainability issues as strategic priorities, including through his capacity as member of the IAIS Executive Committee. Geoff’s role as an ambassador between the SIF and the IAIS was reinforced at the recent Executive Committee meetings in January, where he was chosen to champion climate change as a strategic risk priority. In 2018, key outputs will include a joint SIF-IAIS Issues Paper on Climate Change Risk to the Insurance Sector, which will lay the groundwork for global best-practice guidance for supervisors on climate issues.
Reflecting on his time as Chair, Commissioner Jones said: “It has been a pleasure to serve as the initial Chair of the SIF – and I remain very impressed at the rapid progress the SIF has made as a collaborative leadership group. This club of supervisors is unique among regulatory bodies – and I am delighted to see that our work is inspiring other supervisors and central banks to take action on climate and sustainability issues.”
On taking up his new role as Chair, Mr. Summerhayes said: “I am honoured to succeed Commissioner Jones as the Chair of the SIF. Building on the Commissioner’s vision, the SIF has grown rapidly into the role of a trusted partner with the IAIS on climate and sustainability issues – and I aim to take this collaboration to the next level over coming months. I look forward to engaging with new members as we tackle a three-pillar programme of work across climate issues, promotion of sustainable insurance, and disaster risk resilience in 2018.”