Shock as Britannic chief quits

THE managing director of struggling life insurer Britannic, Bryan Portman, has quit after only nine months in the job.

In a fresh blow to the ailing firm, Portman has decided to 'pursue other interests'. He will be replaced by finance director Paul Thompson, the former Merrill Lynch banker who advised Britannic in its failed attempt to find a buyer.

Portman, 54, is the second top Britannic executive to step down in 18 months. Danny O'Neil left last January after just seven weeks in the role.

Thompson will move into the hot seat next month and Portman will leave the board in September. Britannic has to recruit its fourth finance director in only five years. Roman Cizdyn, insurance analyst at Commerzbank said: 'It's becoming a revolving door.'

Others said it may be hard to attract a candidate given the group's poor finances and the need to travel to its West Midlands head office. Portman, who was paid £299,000 in salary and bonus last year, was promoted to managing director from his finance brief in September.

After two years helping to restructure the insurer, he said he was now keen to seek out a new challenge. 'I want to try my hand at something different,' he said. 'I will look at all options and am not ruling anything in or anything out.'

He added: 'Paul has made an impressive start and I believe he is the ideal person to succeed me. Portman was forced to issue a devastating profits warning in January that saw Britannic's market value halve in one day.

The shares have rallied in recent months on the back of Britannic's moves to shore up its ravaged balance sheet - including shutting the door of its with-profits fund to new business - and they rose a further 15 1/2p to 266 1/2p today.

Britannic chairman Harold Cottam is winding down his executive responsibilities ahead of taking on a full non-executive role next year. Thompson said his immediate priorities would be to continue improving the group's finances and complete the sale of its lending arm, Britannic Money.