Eric Henderson, the head of Nationwide’s annuity business, is set to retire at the end of the year after nearly four decades with the company. During his time at Nationwide, he has led the annuity team since 2007 and served as president of Nationwide Annuity since 2019. Under his leadership, the annuity business has achieved three consecutive record sales years and is now Nationwide’s most profitable business line despite facing volatile market and interest-rate environments.
Henderson began his career at Nationwide as an actuarial assistant in 1985 and held positions of increasing responsibility before taking on leadership of the annuity team in 2007. He will continue to lead the annuity team until his retirement and “help ensure a smooth leadership transition when his successor is named.” Between 2007 and 2023, Henderson oversaw all aspects of the company’s individual annuity segment, including product innovation, sales and distribution.
Nationwide Financial president and COO John Carter praised Henderson’s leadership skills in a press release, stating that he had displayed tremendous resiliency and courage to successfully manage risk and lead teams through challenging economic conditions and turbulent markets. When headwinds began to impact the variable annuity business during the pandemic, Henderson quickly pivoted focus to portfolio of fixed products which resulted in nearly $10 billion in fixed annuity sales in 2023, at a time when others in the industry were forced to exit business lines.
Carter also highlighted Henderson’s ability to recruit and develop high-performing leadership teams and organizations, stating that he had built a high-performing and inclusive leadership team that was well positioned to lead Nationwide’s annuity business for years to come. In addition to his role at Nationwide, Henderson serves as a board member on the Insured Retirement Institute and the LIMRA Annuity Executive Advisory Board.
