Former Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini has been named co-CEO of Westport-based Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund, the same day its current corporate chief, David McCormick, announced he will step down to consider a run for the U.S. Senate.
Bertolini, who previously served as co-chair of Bridgewater’s operating board of directors, will share leadership responsibilities with Nir Bar Dea, who was also named co-CEO on Monday.
In a statement, company officials said Bertolini and Dea will “set and drive the strategic goals” of the firm and oversee day-to-day management.
“Through this co-CEO model, we are getting a powerful combination of Nir, a well-respected internal leader who has worked closely with [McCormick], management and the CIOs for six years, and Mark, who has enormous experience and is a globally respected and proven CEO,” the statement read.
McCormick, who joined Bridgewater in 2009 and had spent nearly five years as CEO, is considering running for an open U.S. Senate seat in his home state of Pennsylvania, according to Bridgewater founder and co-Chief Investment Officer Ray Dalio.
Bertolini was named CEO of Aetna in November 2010, and took on the role of chairman less than a year later. He shepherded the health insurer through its $69 billion acquisition by CVS Health in 2018, and later joined CVS’s board of directors.
In 2020, Bertolini resigned from his position at CVS, and told The Wall Street Journal that he had been forced out despite his continued willingness to serve on the company’s board.
CVS officials offered their own interpretation of events, saying that with the CVS-Aetna integration largely wrapped up, it was time for Bertolini to move on.
Prior to joining Aetna, Bertolini held executive positions at Cigna, NYLCare Health Plans and SelectCare, Inc., where he was president and CEO.
