CS Axa

By Noemie Bisserbe and Inti Landauro 

PARIS--France's largest insurance company AXA SA said Monday that Chairman and Chief Executive Henri de Castries will step down on Sept. 1, in a surprise move after 16 years at the helm of the company.

Mr. de Castries will be replaced by the company's top official in Germany, Thomas Buberl, 42, who was made deputy CEO on Monday, the company said. Denis Duverne, AXA's deputy CEO, will become nonexecutive chairman from Sept. 1.

"I wanted a new team to present and carry out the company's new strategic plan," Mr. de Castries told reporters. "This is the result of a "long, rigorous and exhaustive process," which started back in the fourth quarter of 2013 at his request, he said.

The departure of AXA's outspoken CEO marks a turning point for the company, which is expected to present a new strategic plan in June.

Under Mr. de Castries, AXA has grown into one of the world's largest insurance companies, expanding quickly in fast-growing businesses and emerging markets to offset sluggish growth in Europe and in the U.S. in recent years.

Mr. de Castries didn't say what he will do after leaving AXA. "I don't intend to move into a retirement home or start playing golf," he said, adding that he will take time to think about his next move.

The disclosure of Mr. de Castries's exit comes three days after HSBC Holdings said it has started a search to name its new chairman next year.

Mr. de Castries said, however, that the timing was "coincidental."

"There is no link between the fact that I'm announcing today my departure from AXA and the fact that HSBC has started a process to renew its top management team," he said.

The Sunday Times reported that he is favored to replace Douglas Flint as HSBC chairman. Mr. de Castries joined HSBC's board on March 1.

HSBC hasn't yet made a decision on its next chairman, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Mr. de Castries, who graduated from the prestigious Ecole Nationale d'Administration in 1980 alongside French President François Hollande and Environment Minister Ségolène Royal, began his career with the Finance Ministry Inspection Office, where he audited government agencies from 1980 to 1984.

In 1984, he joined the French Treasury Department, where he played an active role in several privatizations before being appointed to oversee foreign exchange markets and balance of payments for the Treasury.

He joined AXA's corporate finance division in 1989 and was appointed corporate secretary in 1991. Mr. de Castries was also responsible for dealing with the legal aspects of the reorganization and merger of Compagnie du Midi with the AXA.

In 1993, Mr. de Castries was appointed senior executive vice president for the group's asset management, financial and real estate businesses. In 1994, he assumed the additional role of overseeing North American and U.K. operations.

In 1996, he organized the merger of AXA with French rival Union des Assurances de Paris. He was appointed Chairman of The Equitable Companies, which later became AXA Financial, in 1997.

Mr. de Castries has been Chairman of the AXA management board since May of 2000.

Margot Patrick contributed to this article.

Write to Inti Landauro at inti.landauro@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 21, 2016 10:19 ET (14:19 GMT)

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