Mike Treske Appointed Head of Annuity Distribution for John Hancock and President of John Hancock Wood Logan

BOSTON, Jan. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- John Hancock Financial today named Mike Treske as head of Annuity Distribution for John Hancock and President of John Hancock Wood Logan.  In his new role, Mr. Treske will be responsible for all aspects of retail distribution supporting the Fixed and Variable annuities business units, including sales and sales strategies.  He will report to Marc Costantini, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Variable Annuities.

"Mike Treske has a long record of leadership success with Manulife and John Hancock. I am delighted that he is stepping into another important role with our company," said Mr. Costantini.

Since 2002, Mr. Treske has served as head of the Variable Annuity Financial Planners channel. He joined Manulife's Wood Logan annuity business in 1999 as Southeast Division Sales Manager and subsequently was named National Sales Manager for the Financial Planners channel. Mr. Treske began his financial services career in 1987 as a wholesaler. Prior to joining Manulife, he held positions with Fidelity and Evergreen Funds. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire, and attended graduate school at Colorado State University.

Mr. Treske succeeds Robert T. Cassato, who will assume a new role as a senior advisor to Manulife Chief Operating Officer John D. DesPrez III on global distribution strategy. Mr. Cassato also becomes Chairman of John Hancock Annuity Distribution, succeeding Doug Wood, who becomes Chairman Emeritus. He will continue to lead the U.S. National Accounts group. In the fall of 2009, Mr. Cassato was inducted into the Insured Retirement Institute Hall of Fame in recognition of his contributions and leadership in the variable annuity industry.

"Over the course of Bob's 20-year tenure with our company, he has been instrumental in building one of the most powerful distribution networks in the U.S., contributing greatly to our success as a company," said Mr. DesPrez. "I am pleased that he will now bring his experience and insight to Manulife in a broader capacity as we work to expand our distribution in all geographies."

John Hancock also announced that Chris Mee will assume leadership of the Financial Planners channel, reporting to Mr. Treske. Mr. Mee, who has been with the company since 1998, most recently served as Divisional Sales Manager for the Southeastern region. Before joining Manulife, he was a financial advisor with A.G. Edwards & Sons and Prudential Securities.

About John Hancock Financial and Manulife Financial Corporation

John Hancock Financial is a unit of Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading Canadian-based financial services group serving millions of customers in 22 countries and territories worldwide. The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies, comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers a broad range of financial products and services, including life insurance, fixed and variable annuities, fixed products, mutual funds, 401(k) plans, long-term care insurance, college savings, and other forms of business insurance. Additional information about John Hancock may be found at www.johnhancock.com.

Operating as Manulife Financial in Canada and in most of Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, Manulife offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were Cdn$437 billion (US$407 billion) as at September 30, 2009.  

Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial may be found on the Internet at www.manulife.com.

SOURCE John Hancock Financial