Cigna New Zealand has appointed former ANZ executive Steven Fyfe as its chairman.

Mr Fyfe was the local Deputy CEO of ANZ until earlier last year, when he retired after a 29-year career at the bank.

Cigna has 180 staff at its Wellington headquarters and offers life insurance, including funeral plans and trauma cover, to more then 275,000 customers.

Prior to ANZ’s acquisition of the National Bank of NZ in 2003, Mr Fyfe was an executive director at the institution.

He is also chairman of the Wellington-based Co-operative Bank and a director of Crown Asset Management.