Eric Kirsch to Retire as Aflac Global CIO in March

Aflac Global CIO Eric Kirsch is retiring at the end of March and will be succeeded by Deputy Global CIO Bradley Dyslin, who will assume the role at the beginning of 2023. Kirsch will remain with the company for the first three months of the new year to help with the transition before retiring.

Kirsch joined Aflac in November 2011 as senior vice president and global CIO, and was promoted to executive vice president the following year. In 2018, his job expanded and he was named president of Aflac Global Investments, Aflac Incorporated’s asset management subsidiary. He oversees the company’s investment strategies, including Aflac’s investment portfolio and its investment teams in the U.S. and Japan.

Before joining Aflac, Kirsch was managing director and global head of insurance asset management at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, where he managed a team of 55 professionals and oversaw more than $70 billion of insurance assets in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Prior to Goldman Sachs, Kirsch spent 27 years combined at Deutsche Asset Management and Bankers Trust, most recently serving as managing director and global head of insurance asset management. The company credits Kirsch with “consistently outperforming investment performance targets” during his tenure, while incorporating environmental, social, and governance investing principles.

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“Eric has successfully built a leading global investment team while managing a well-diversified portfolio that has mitigated risk and added substantial income,” Aflac Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Daniel Amos said in a statement. “At the same time, Eric has developed a superior leadership team, including Brad, who has done an equally remarkable job enhancing our investment function.”

Dyslin joined Aflac in 2012 as managing director and global head of credit for Aflac Global Investments. He implemented a new credit function that the company says led to a significant improvement in portfolio quality, while becoming a core investment strength. He was promoted to senior managing director in 2016, and the following year, his role was expanded to co-lead the external management platform responsible for asset outsourcing and overseeing third-party managers. He was most recently promoted to deputy global CIO in 2021.

Aflac says Dyslin currently provides senior leadership for investment initiatives, such as strategic asset allocation and setting investment strategy. He is also responsible for the portfolio management, research, and investment recommendations for all credit-related assets that make up the core of Aflac’s global portfolio. Dyslin also researches potential new strategic investment opportunities, oversees Aflac Global Investments’ strategic investment and corporate development activities, and serves on the board of Varagon Capital Partners, Sound Point Commercial Real Estate Finance, and Denham Capital Sustainable Infrastructure.

Prior to joining Aflac, Dyslin was senior vice president, head of research and portfolio manager for Hartford Investment Management, and before that was director of U.S. credit research for Deutsche Asset Management in New York. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst charterholder, and earned a bachelor of science degree in business administration and economics from Morningside College, and a master of business administration degree from the University of Iowa.

“Eric has distinguished himself as an outstanding partner and accomplished leader who has grounded our portfolio with a robust strategic asset allocation process,” Aflac President and Chief Operating Officer Frederick Crawford said in a statement. “As part of his decade-long legacy, Eric leaves us with an excellent successor in Brad. Their collaboration over the years will ensure continuity and will result in a seamless transition, as Brad is the right person to lead Aflac Global Investment’s teams and investment strategy into the future.”