National Dawie de Villiers named new CEO of Alexander Forbes The share price gained nearly 5% to R518 in early trade on the JSE, following the announcement BL PREMIUM

Financial services group Alexander Forbes has appointed Dawie de Villiers as new CEO, moving swiftly to replace Andrew Darfoor, who was fired last week. The market nodded in agreement, with the share price gaining nearly 5% to R518 in early trade on the JSE, giving it a market value of R6.9bn. De Villiers joins Alexander Forbes from Sanlam, where he had occupied various roles going back to 1993. His stints included the role of CEO of Sanlam Structured Solutions and Sanlam Employee Benefits. The latest developments came after the board axed Darfoor with immediate effect last Wednesday, saying it had lost trust and confidence in him. It has since emerged that some shareholders, including Patrice Motsepe's African Rainbow Capital, appeared to be at odds with Darfoor's strategy. Darfoor had been at the helm for only three years when he was removed.