Thomas Mathew appointed interim chairman of LIC

S K Roy elevated to post of managing director

The government on Friday appointed Thomas Mathew T as the interim chairman of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), as its present chief, D K Mehrotra, retired on Friday. Mathew was one of the managing directors of the country’s largest life insurer. S K Roy has been appointed as another managing director. LIC can have up to four managing directors.

Rajiv Takru, Union financial services secretary, told Business Standard Mathew would hold the position until he retires in end-June. “The government will soon take a decision on the name of the new chairman,” Takru said.

The government has interviewed five candidates for the post of chairman, including managing director Sushobhan Sarkar and LIC Housing Finance MD & CEO V K Sharma. Three executive directors, S B Mainak, S K Roy and Usha Sangwan, also appeared for the interview.

Mathew holds the position of managing director in LIC since 2006. He is a postgraduate in economics and also holds a degree in law. Mathew has a little more than 30 years of professional experience in the life insurance sector  and is the seniormost person in the institution after D K Mehrotra.

After acquiring experience at branch and divisional levels, Mathew moved to leadership positions as senior divisional manager, zonal manager and executive director at LIC.

Experts said Mathew acquired business and people acumen through several years of strategising and innovating in the entire spectrum of life insurance in a competitive market. He was then elevated to the position of managing director.

Mathew has handled successfully almost all the functions in LIC, including marketing, investment, information technology and international operations. Apart from being the managing director at LIC, Mathew is on the board of several Indian companies.