Manulife Financial has announced the appointment of Paul Rooney as senior executive VP and general manager, Canada, and Robert Cook as senior executive VP and general manager, Asia.

Cook, currently Executive Vice President, U.S. Protection, will assume his new role on Jan. 1, 2007, succeeding Vic Apps, who is retiring.

Rooney, currently executive VP, individual insurance and CFO, Canadian division, will assume his new role early in 2007 upon the retirement of Bruce Gordon.

“I am pleased that the exceptional depth of our management team allows us to make changes of this nature with the full confidence that our business will continue to grow and succeed,” said Dominic D’Alessandro, president and CEO.

Rooney joined Manulife in 1986, and held various actuarial positions in the corporate and U.S. divisions prior to joining Canadian division in 1998 as VP and GM of the affinity markets business. He became executive VP for individual insurance in 2001, and was named CFO of the Canadian division in March 2006. Rooney holds an Honours Bachelor of Science from the University of Western Ontario and is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries.

“Manulife is a market leader in Canada, and it has always made me proud to represent a company that stands for the best ideals in business,” Rooney said. “My goal is to stay focused on our core beliefs of acting professionally and doing the right thing, while delivering value to our customers.”

Cook joined Manulife in 1978, and in his 28 years with the company he has held management positions in Manulife’s U.S., Canadian, international and corporate divisions, in areas including strategic planning, product management for insurance and annuities, sales and marketing. Cook is a graduate of the Universities of Toronto and Calgary and holds an MBA in Finance.

“Asia has been an area of significant growth for Manulife over the years,” Cook said. “I’m excited about the many strong businesses we have there, as well as the opportunity to build on Vic’s success in each of the markets in which we operate.”

Apps has agreed to remain as non-executive chairman of Manulife (International) Limited, the holding company for Manulife’s Asian operations in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and Manulife’s joint venture in China, Manulife-Sinochem. He will also continue to serve on the boards of Manulife’s other Asian subsidiaries and represent the company in the many communities in which Manulife operates across Asia.