Avon investment banker Thomas B. Leonardi is Connecticut’s new insurance commissioner.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced his choice Friday to replace the post vacated by Thomas Sullivan, an appointee of former Gov. M. Jodi Rell.Â
The post was temporarily filled by agency veteran Barbara Spear.
Leonardi is chairman and CEO of Northington Partners Inc, an insurance specialty venture capital and investment banking firm founded in 1989.
“It is important to have someone in this position who can strike the appropriate balance between consumer protection and business development,” Malloy said.
Before joining Northington, Leonardi was senior vice president in charge of mergers and acquisitions and venture capital activities at Conning & Co.. In 1984, he was the president and vice chairman of Beneficial Corp.’s insurance subsidiaries.
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