Sergio Ermotti, chairman of Swiss Re Friday, 16 April 2021 13:06 | Written by Katharina Bart Sergio Ermotti Shifts from Banker to Statesman The former CEO of UBS, Sergio Ermotti, had promised a blackout after leaving the Swiss wealth manager at the end of October. He resurfaced publicly on Friday, when Swiss Re investors backed him as the reinsurer's next chairman, after a year of understudying with long-standing overseer Walter Kielholz. «In my new role, I look forward to advocating for Switzerland as an attractive location for the insurance industry,» the 60-year-old Ticino native told shareholders in an annual meeting held online. Insurance represents as much of Swiss gross domestic product as Switzerland's heavyweight banking sector, and also a more consistent one.