RICHMOND, Va., Oct. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) announces that it will appoint Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Patrick B. Kelleher as president and CEO, Retirement and Protection, and executive vice president of the company.  Kevin Walker has been named senior vice president and chief financial officer, Retirement and Protection.    

Kelleher, 52, joined Genworth in 2007 with nearly 30 years experience in life insurance and financial management.  From 1980 until being named Genworth's senior vice president and chief financial officer in early 2007, Kelleher held various financial leadership and product management positions at Sun Life Assurance Company, Manulife Financial and, prior to joining Genworth, Transamerica Reinsurance.  Kelleher is a member of the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada, a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and a Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries.  He received his bachelor's degree from Franklin & Marshall College.

"I'm extremely pleased that Pat Kelleher will assume leadership of the Retirement and Protection segment," said Michael D. Fraizer, Genworth president and chief executive officer.  "Pat brings a broad and deep background and has contributed strongly to the company's positioning, financial discipline and improved performance coming out of a challenging period."

As the leader of Genworth's Retirement and Protection segment, Kelleher will oversee lines of business including life insurance, long term care insurance, wealth management, annuities and supplemental offerings.  As Genworth completes a search process for his replacement, Kelleher will maintain his current responsibilities as Genworth's chief financial officer while transitioning to his Retirement and Protection leadership role.  Kelleher will succeed Pamela S. Schutz, who previously announced her plans to retire from Genworth in February 2011.  

Kevin Walker, 48, joins Genworth from Allianz SE where he spent the past decade in several senior leadership positions, most recently as senior vice president of Group Planning and Controlling.  Before that, he was Allianz' senior vice president and senior financial officer, product lines, for Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America in Minneapolis.  Walker graduated from Colorado State University with a bachelor's degree in Finance.  He is a Certified Treasury Professional, a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Fellow of the Life Office Management Institute.  Walker assumes his role in December.

About Genworth Financial

Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is a leading Fortune 500 global financial security company.  Genworth has more than $100 billion in assets and employs approximately 6,000 people with a presence in more than 25 countries.  Its products and services help meet the investment, protection, retirement and lifestyle needs of more than 15 million customers.  Genworth operates through three segments: Retirement and Protection, U.S. Mortgage Insurance and International. Its products and services are offered through financial intermediaries, advisors, independent distributors and sales specialists.  Genworth Financial, which traces its roots back to 1871, became a public company in 2004 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.  For more information, visit Genworth.com.  From time to time Genworth releases important information via postings on its corporate website.  Accordingly, investors and other interested parties are encouraged to enroll to receive automatic email alerts and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds regarding new postings.  Enrollment information is found under the "Investors" section of Genworth.com.  

SOURCE Genworth Financial, Inc.