Appointments: First Actuarial, Vidett, Muse, Wayhome

Consultancy group First Actuarial has appointed Declan Keohane as head of risk transfer.

He has worked at First Actuarial since 2007 and has been a partner since 2011. Prior to joining, he worked for firms including Aon and LCP.

First Actuarial said Keohane’s skills and experience “make him the ideal business leader” for the risk transfer arm of the company. He said the company was also seeking to train and develop junior talent to expand its capacity.

“The buy-in and buy-out market is extremely buoyant and everyone expects it to remain so for the next few years,” Keohane added. “A growing number of insurers offer streamlined processes for smaller schemes, which work very well. We help trustees with the preparation work needed to meet stringent requirements as busy insurers assess whether or not to quote.”

Vidett hires five to grow trustee and governance business

Professional trustee firm Vidett has made a series of appointments across its business.

Katie Clegg has joined from Aon as a client director work with clients on governance and scheme secretarial issues. She worked at Aon for more than 18 years in a variety of roles across scheme management, governance, and secretarial support.

Emilie Bisset has joined from DHL, where she has spent 15 years in various pension roles. At Vidett, Bisset is a manager and will act as scheme secretary on a portfolio of clients, the company said in a statement.

Nic Pytlinski has joined Vidett’s people services team, based in London, as a talent acquisition specialist. She previously worked for MBK Search where she ran the company’s EMEA division.

Meanwhile, Jacob Seymour has joined as a senior management accountant to “develop new processes and policies”, and Sharon Marlow has joined as a finance analyst.

ITM chair Howorth takes up role at homeownership company

Duncan Howorth has been appointed non-executive chair of the board of Wayhome, a homeownership company.

Howorth is currently non-executive chair of pension technology company ITM and Cushon, the fintech and master trust provider.

During his career, he was CEO of Jardine Lloyd Thompson’s UK employee benefits business and latterly held the same role for its Asia insurance and benefits businesses. He was also a director at Smart Pension for four years.

Wayhome specialises in providing “gradual homeownership” solutions, and has raised £75m from pension fund investors. It said it was “opening up new lines of funding” across different types of pension schemes.

New head of market engagement at Muse

Muse Advisory has hired Adrian Cooper as its new head of market engagement. He joins from HUB Financial Solutions, a retirement guidance and advice business owned by Just Group.

In his new role, Cooper will focus on promoting Muse’s services to potential clients across pension schemes and advisers.

He has also held senior distribution and business development roles at companies including Barnett Waddingham, WTW and Sackers.