QBE has denied that former Aon UK CEO Peter Harmer is being lined up to succeed Frank O’Halloran as Group CEO.

An unsourced article in the UK Insurance Insider newsletter on August 27 was reported by insuranceNEWS.com.au last Monday. The company declined to comment on the report prior to publication.

However, the article led to so much market discussion – and a share price rise of 14 cents – that COO Neil Drabsch released a one-line statement on Monday night saying “rumours that [QBE] has agreed on a CEO replacement are completely unfounded. QBE has not appointed an external recruiter to fill the CEO role.”

On Wednesday QBE Chairman Belinda Hutchinson weighed in with a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange saying the UK report was “completely false” and indicating that Mr O’Halloran’s replacement will be selected from within the company.

“The board has not appointed an external recruiter to fill the CEO role,” she said. “QBE has a long-standing and successful succession planning process due to the depth of its high-quality management team.

“This team is ably led by Frank, who will remain the CEO for the foreseeable future. Frank has publicly stated his interest and willingness to continue as CEO.

“QBE will advise the market before making senior management changes.”