Prudential names new CEO in leadership shakeup

Significant changes are afoot at Prudential, the $1.6 trillion insurance and annuities titan, which has selected its next CEO along with a raft of other leadership announcements.

Prudential Financial revealed that Andrew Sullivan will assume the role of CEO effective March 31. He succeeds Charles Lowrey, who will transition to executive chairman of the board for 18 months.

Sullivan, currently executive vice president overseeing international businesses and global investment management, has taken on progressively senior roles at the company since joining in 2011.

“Andy is an exceptional leader who brings a deep understanding of our businesses, our strategy, our people, and our customers to this role, and I have every confidence that he is the right leader to take Prudential into the future,” Lowrey said in a statement Tuesday.

Sullivan will lead the company into its next phase of growth as it nears its 150th anniversary. Reflecting on his new role, he said, “I would like to thank Charlie and the Board of Directors for their confidence and trust in me. Under Charlie’s leadership, Prudential has made substantial progress towards becoming a higher growth, more capital-efficient company, refined its business mix, invested in technology, and innovated new products.”

Caroline Feeney, who has been heading Prudential’s US businesses since 2021, will also be stepping into an expanded role as global head of insurance and retirement. The newly created position will oversee Prudential’s domestic and international insurance and retirement operations.

Praising Feeney’s appointment, Sullivan said: “Bringing these capabilities together in one global division under Caroline’s leadership will create additional opportunities for collaboration and growth.”

The leadership transition also includes the departure of Vice Chair Robert Falzon, who will step down from the board on March 31 and retire later in July after 42 years with the company.

Michael Todman, Prudential’s lead independent director, commended both Lowrey and Falzon for their contributions, adding that Sullivan is well-positioned to drive continued progress.

"Among many other achievements, Charlie was the principal architect of a complex strategic transformation that has positioned Prudential to be a nimble, dynamic, and high-growth company for years to come," Todman said. "After thoroughly considering a diverse array of candidates for the CEO role, the Board is confident that Andy is the right leader to continue this progress."

Prudential's leadership changes come shortly after it completed a major transaction with LPL, which moved thousands of advisors from the broker-dealer and RIA operations of its retail arm, Prudential Advisors, over to LPL's platform. As part of that move, roughly $25 billion in assets has been added to LPL's platform as of November 18, with another $35 billion set to be migrated in the coming months.