Bermuda insurance giant ACE yesterday announced the appointment of Philip Bancroft as chief financial officer of ACE Limited.

Mr. Bancroft is succeeding Chris Marshall who has been the company's CFO since 1992.

Mr. Marshall, who is Bermudian and the company's first employee, is to become executive assistant to ACE chair and chief executive officer Brian Duperreault.

Mr. Bancroft will be based in Bermuda and will report directly to Mr. Duperreault.

Previous to this position with ACE, Mr. Bancroft worked over a 20 year period for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC).

Most recently, he served as partner-in-charge of the New York Regional Insurance Practice, where he led a team of approximately 200 partners and staff that serves many of PWC's most significant insurance clients.

Mr. Bancroft has been a partner with PWC for the past ten years, having worked in their New York, Philadelphia and Harrisburg offices.

He received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

He is also a certified public accountant.

Meanwhile, Mr. Marshall, in his new role as executive assistant, will focus on strategic initiatives and special projects designated by Mr. Duperreault, including mergers and acquisition activity and other corporate initiatives.

"We are pleased to attract someone of Philip Bancroft's calibre and extensive industry experience and believe he will be an invaluable addition to ACE." Mr. Duperreault said, and added: "I would also like to thank Chris Marshall for the critical role he has played in ACE's growth and development, which includes being a key player in nine major acquisitions, as well as overseeing the successful completion of several corporate financing projects.

"Chris is ACE's first employee and we are especially pleased that he will continue to have an impact on ACE's future success and development."