Mark Laidlaw

Mr Laidlaw and Mr McGee bring with them over 40 years’ worth of industry experience across pensions, investments and protection, many of which have been spent at a senior c-suite level.

Mr Laidlaw is currently corporate strategy director at LV=, where he recently oversaw the sale of the business to a leading global private investment firm, following a strategic review process that he ran directly with the CEO.

During his career, Mr Laidlaw has held several executive level roles across actuarial, finance, risk and strategy, for organisations in the UK and internationally. His previous positions include chief capital and investment officer at LV= and chief risk officer, as well as chief financial officer (CFO), of Aegon UK.

Meanwhile, Mr McGee is currently CFO at Aegon UK, where he is responsible for the leadership of the finance function and, as a board member also contributes to the wider strategy, direction and performance of the company.

Stephen McGee

He has more than 25 years’ experience working in the financial services industry including three years as chief actuary at Lloyds Banking Group and a total of 12 years at Phoenix Group.

David Huntley, Scottish Friendly’s chairman, commented: “We are delighted to have both Mark and Stephen join the Board at Scottish Friendly. The vast experience they bring with them will serve to strengthen the technical capability of our current Board and complement our existing team of non-executive directors.

Mark Laidlaw said: “Scottish Friendly has an excellent reputation as a leading financial mutual and I am delighted to be joining the board at this exciting time. Having worked in various capacities across the financial industry I am keen to use my knowledge and experience to help Scottish Friendly continue to go from strength-to-strength.”

Stephen McGee added: “The past 18 months has been a difficult time for the industry but Scottish Friendly has shown its ability to adapt and to always operate with the best interest of its members in mind. I am very much looking forward to working closely with the board to help steer the business forward.”