Pauline Azzopardi has been newly appointed by the Board of Supervisors of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) to the Insurance and Reinsurance Stakeholder Group (IRSG) and Occupational Pensions Stakeholder Group (OPSG). She will serve for a 4-year term.
Azzopardi who is currently President of the Association for Consumer Rights Malta (ACR) and was Malta Representative on the European Consumer Consultative Group (ECCG) for the last 6 years, is the only Maltese representative and the only person EIOPA appointed to both Stakeholder Groups following an open call which received 158 applications from 26 European countries.
The two Stakeholder Groups are composed of 30 members each and consist of a broad range of stakeholders, representing the industry, consumers, beneficiaries, academics, small and medium-sized companies, employees as well as professional associations.
Azzopardi has enjoyed a long and successful career in Financial Services and worked for the Post Office and British Telecoms Pension Fund Management in London (Postel Investment Limited), Middle Sea Insurance, Mid-Med Bank, HSBC Bank Malta PLC and Munich Re.
She was elected Fellow of the UK’s Chartered Insurance Institute (FCII) in 2019 and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Malta.
Azzopardi also served as President of the HSBC Banking on Women Foundation which promoted the professional advancement of women and was Vice President of the National Council of Women.
Gabriel Bernardino, Chairman of EIOPA, said: ‘In these challenging and uncertain times it is even more important to have a vital connection to different stakeholders. Stakeholder groups provide a valuable contribution to EIOPA’s work. Thanks to their broad geographical representation, and the diverse professional backgrounds, EIOPA can take informed decisions and make sure that interests of European citizens are taken into account. I would like to thank the outgoing members for their dedication and contributions while wishing new members a good start.’
EIOPA, which focuses on insurance and occupational pensions supervision, is an independent advisory body to the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.