Denis Berthiaume appointed Senior Vice-President and General Manager, Wealth
Management and Life and Health Insurance at Desjardins Group

LÉVIS, QC, Aug. 19 /CNW Telbec/ - Monique F. Leroux, Chair of the Board, President and CEO of Desjardins Group, announces the appointment of Denis Berthiaume to the position of Senior Vice-President and General Manager, Wealth Management and Life and Health Insurance, Desjardins Group. Mr. Berthiaume will take up his new position on September 7 and will succeed Bruno Morin, who will retire on December 31 after 38 years with Desjardins Group.

Mr. Berthiaume has an impressive career path and significant experience in the field of financial institutions. Before joining Desjardins Group, he was Senior Vice-President, Retail Markets for a major international financial institution. This marks a return to Desjardins Group for Mr. Berthiaume as he previously worked for 10 years with Desjardins Financial Security, where he quickly moved up the ranks during that period.

In his new position, Mr. Berthiaume will be responsible for a team at Desjardins Group of nearly 4,800 people that handles manufacturing life and health insurance and specialized savings products, the integrated distribution of these products through the caisse network or through complementary channels for clients with specialized needs. The team will also oversee marketing for the sector's activities to support the caisse network and the back-office services.

"We are lucky to have a high-calibre manager such as Mr. Berthiaume on our team," Ms. Leroux said. "Throughout his career, Mr. Berthiaume acquired extensive knowledge of the financial services industry and of its challenges. His vast experience, notably in the Canadian savings markets, will allow him to develop the activities of Desjardins Group's Wealth Management and Life and Health Insurance sector to increase its major role not only in Québec, but throughout the country."

As Senior Vice-President and General Manager, Wealth Management and Life and Health Insurance, Mr. Berthiaume will sit on the Desjardins Group Management Committee. His major challenge will be to increase Desjardins Group's market share, especially savings for members and clients with specialized needs, as well as life and health insurance in the caisses, oversee the evolution of distribution networks through various channels and support the rollout of an integrated offer to caisses in wealth management and life and health insurance.

Mr. Berthiaume graduated from Université Laval (Québec City) with a bachelor of actuarial studies; he is a Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries (CIA) and of the Society of Actuaries (SOA).

In addition, Ms. Leroux wishes to pay special tribute to Bruno Morin's exceptional contribution to Desjardins Group's success. "I wish to sincerely thank Bruno Morin for everything he accomplished throughout his illustrious career with our cooperative financial group. The members of the Board of Directors, his staff, colleagues from the Management Committee and I will remember Morin as a high-calibre manager who was always forthright, friendly and entirely devoted to Desjardins Group's development. I also wish to thank him for accepting to guide his successor between now and his well-deserved departure at the end of the year."

Mr. Morin will remain General Manager of Caisse centrale Desjardins and of Capital Desjardins Inc. and will continue to act as General Manager of Capital régional et coopératif Desjardins. He will also continue to sit on the board of directors of some Desjardins Group components.

About Desjardins Group

Desjardins Group is the largest cooperative financial group in Canada and the sixth largest in the world, with assets of more than $173 billion. Drawing on the strength of its caisse network in Québec and Ontario, and its subsidiaries across Canada, it offers a full range of financial products and services to its 5.8 million members and clients. Desjardins specializes in Wealth Management and Life and Health Insurance, in Property and Casualty insurance, in Personal Services, in Business and Institutional Services. As one of the largest employers in the country, Desjardins is supported by the skills of its 42,200 employees and the commitment of over 6,200 elected officers. For more information, visit www.desjardins.com.

For further information:

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André Chapleau
Director of Media Relations
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