Patrick Murphy steps down as CEO of John Hancock Retirement

John Hancock Retirement CEO Patrick Murphy is stepping down, being succeeded in the role by Sue Reibel, the company announced today.

Murphy, who assumed the CEO job in 2018, “is on long-term medical leave and will be stepping away from the position to focus fully on his health and recovery,” the company stated. The firm would not be doing press interviews about the change, according to a company spokesperson.

Reibel, who joined John Hancock’s parent firm in 1994, was most recently the global head of retirement at that company, Manulife Investment Management.

“Pat has been instrumental in building this business for us and he’s left us well-positioned for growth as a proven resource for plan sponsors and financial professionals helping participants prepare for a secure retirement,” said Andrew Arnott, Manulife’s head of wealth and asset management for the U.S. and Europe, in the company’s announcement. “Sue’s expertise and focus on the U.S. market will help to accelerate our momentum by utilizing her vast global and retirement experience.”

Reibel, who is based in Toronto but will be relocating to Boston, previously led Manulife’s Canadian group retirement and group benefits business. She also led and oversaw the establishment of that company’s direct-to-consumer business.

In 2014, John Hancock bought New York Life’s retirement plan business. That deal included Hancock selling its life insurance business to New York Life.

Hancock’s retirement and record-keeping business has “a strong base from which to expand,” Reibel said in the announcement. That business represented more than 52,000 retirement plans, 3 million participants and $212 billion in assets as of the end of March, according to figures from the firm.