Nationwide’s Eric Henderson set to step down

investmentnews.com:

Nationwide, the financial product provider and retirement industry giant, has announced a the retirement of a key person in its leadership.

Eric Henderson, president of Nationwide’s annuity business, said he will retire at the end of 2024, concluding a notable 39-year career with the company.

Henderson has been at the helm of the annuity division since 2007 and assumed the presidency in 2019, guiding the unit through periods of significant growth and challenge.

Under Henderson’s leadership, Nationwide’s annuity business has seen a series of innovations aimed at aligning the business with evolving consumer needs and enhancing digital and technological capabilities. These efforts, the firm said, have improved interactions with partners and customers while fostering disciplined management of the product portfolio and pricing strategies.

“Throughout his career, Eric has displayed tremendous resiliency and courage to successfully manage risk and lead teams through challenging economic conditions and turbulent markets,” John Carter, president and COO of Nationwide Financial, said in a statement.

He highlighted Henderson’s strategic shift during the pandemic to focus on fixed annuity products, when other companies were downsizing or exiting certain business lines. That against-the-current thinking led to nearly ten billion dollars in sales in 2023 alone, Carter said.

“Outcomes like this are indicative of Eric’s entire career in which his team helped us grow market share, contribute more profit to the broader Nationwide enterprise and become widely regarded as one of the top annuity providers in the industry,” he added.

Henderson’s journey with Nationwide began in 1985 as an actuarial assistant. Over the years, he climbed