Christian Mumenthaler
METLIFEAbout Christian Mumenthaler
Christian Mumenthaler (age 55) is an Independent Director of MetLife, Inc., elected February 25, 2025 with service effective May 1, 2025, and serves on the Finance & Risk Committee and the Investment Committee . He is the former Group Chief Executive Officer of Swiss Re AG (2016–2024) with deep insurance/reinsurance, risk management, and global operating expertise, and holds an M.S. and Ph.D. from ETH Zurich .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swiss Re AG | Group Chief Executive Officer | 2016–2024 | Led through elevated nat-cat cycles; focused on resilience, growth, and “all-weather” performance |
| Swiss Re AG | Chief Executive Officer, Reinsurance | 2011–2016 | Oversaw reinsurance franchise, innovation in risk transfer |
| Swiss Re AG | Chief Marketing Officer, Reinsurance | 2011 | Commercial leadership in reinsurance |
| Swiss Re AG | Head of Life & Health in (Re)Insurance Product | 2007–2010 | Product leadership across L&H |
| Swiss Re AG | Chief Risk Officer | 2005–2007 | Enterprise risk oversight; attended most Group Board meetings 2005–2024 |
| Swiss Re AG | Head of Group Retro & Syndication | 2002–2005 | Retrocession and syndication strategy |
| Swiss Re AG | Manager, Group Strategic Planning | 1999–2002 | Corporate strategy |
| Boston Consulting Group | Associate | 1997–1999 | Strategy consulting |
External Roles
| Category | Current roles | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| U.S.-listed public company boards | None | No other U.S.-listed directorships disclosed |
| Non-U.S. public, private, non-profit | Not disclosed | No additional board roles disclosed in proxy |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Finance & Risk Committee (member, effective May 1, 2025) and Investment Committee (member, effective May 1, 2025) .
- Independence: Board determined all Non-Management Directors meet NYSE/SEC independence; Mumenthaler is an Independent Director .
- Tenure: Elected Feb 25, 2025; effective May 1, 2025; initial term to 2025 Annual Meeting .
- Board effectiveness context: In 2024, Board held 5 regular meetings; principal committees met 33 times; Directors attending in 2024 had 100% attendance at regular Board and committee meetings (Mumenthaler joined in 2025, so no 2024 attendance) .
- Executive sessions: Non-Management Directors meet in executive session without management at regularly scheduled meetings .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount (USD) | Frequency/Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Board cash retainer | $150,000 | Payable quarterly in advance; no meeting fees |
| Annual Board equity (fully vested shares) | $175,000 value in shares | Shares vest/deliver immediately upon grant; paid quarterly |
| Committee Chair cash retainers | Audit $40,000; Finance & Risk $40,000; Compensation $30,000; Governance $25,000; Investment $25,000 | Paid to Chairs only |
| Chairman of the Board retainers | $125,000 cash; $125,000 shares | Independent Chair, not applicable to Mumenthaler |
| Other | No meeting fees; no additional pay for concurrent MLIC board service | Structure applies to Non-Management Directors |
Grant practice illustration (2024): quarterly fully-vested stock awards were granted on Jan 2, Apr 1, Jun 18, Oct 1 (e.g., $43,772 per installment for most Non-Management Directors) .
Performance Compensation
Directors do not receive performance-based incentives (no AVIP, no PSUs/Options linked to metrics); equity is fully vested at grant, and options are not granted to directors under current program .
| Compensation element | Performance linkage | Metric details |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer | None | Fixed cash |
| Annual equity (fully vested shares) | None (time-based; immediate vesting) | Quarterly fully-vested shares; grant-date NYSE close used for fair value |
| Options | Not granted to Non-Management Directors | N/A |
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Potential interlock | Status | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| Shared boards with MET competitors/suppliers/customers | None disclosed | No U.S.-listed directorships disclosed |
| Related party transactions | None requiring disclosure since Jan 1, 2024 | Governance Committee reviews/approves policy |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Core competencies: Executive Leadership; Insurance & Financial Services; Global Literacy; Regulated Industry/Government .
- Role fit: Appointed as part of Board refresh to strengthen oversight of risk, capital, and international growth aligned with MetLife’s New Frontier strategy (2025–2029) .
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Common Stock (#) | Exercisable Options (#) | Deferred Shares (#) | Total Beneficial (#) | % of Class | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian Mumenthaler | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | * (<1%) | As of March 31, 2025 |
- Director share ownership guidelines: minimum value equal to 5× cash retainer; Directors expected to retain net shares acquired until guideline met; no minimum time frame; hedging/pledging prohibited .
- Hedging/pledging policy: Directors prohibited from short sales, hedging, options trading, and pledging MetLife shares .
Governance Assessment
- Positives
- Independence and fresh perspective: Independent appointment in 2025 supports board refresh and strengthens risk/insurance expertise on Finance & Risk and Investment Committees .
- Strong governance framework: Prohibition on hedging/pledging; majority-independent Board; committee rotation; robust evaluations and executive sessions .
- Shareholder alignment signals: Director ownership guidelines (5× cash retainer); equity grants in stock; say-on-pay support historically strong (95% in 2024) .
- Watch items
- Ownership alignment ramp-up: As a new Director, current beneficial ownership is zero; expected accumulation under guidelines—monitor progress to guideline compliance over first 2–3 years .
- Conflicts: No related-party transactions disclosed; continue monitoring given prior Swiss Re executive roles (no conflicts disclosed) .
- RED FLAGS
- None disclosed regarding attendance, related-party transactions, hedging/pledging, or option repricing .
Appendix: Committee Context for Mumenthaler
| Committee | Role | Oversight focus |
|---|---|---|
| Finance & Risk | Member (effective May 1, 2025) | Capital structure/actions; capital/liquidity; risk assessment/management; CRO oversight |
| Investment | Member (effective May 1, 2025) | Investment portfolio oversight; risk coordination with Finance & Risk |