By Business & Finance 
Pictured (from l-r): Managing Partner Feargal Brennan, and partner and Head of Technology Group Victor Timon, with new technology partner Laura Greene.
This week sees new and notable appointments at ByrneWallace, Ding, MyLifeCover and Aviva Life & Pensions.
Laura Greene, Partner
ByrneWallace
ByrneWallace has announced the continued expansion of the firm’s technology practice with the appointment of Laura Greene as an additional technology law partner. Greene specialises in advising the private and public sector on a broad range of IT related matters including software development and licensing, outsourcing, large IT infrastructure projects, cloud computing, SAAS arrangements, e-commerce, API licensing, technology development and commercialisation, complex service models and artificial intelligence.
In addition to supporting large public and private sector clients on the development and design of IT projects of scale, she has also worked extensively with start-up and scaling businesses on their fundraising and development activities.
Commenting on Greene’s appointment, Managing Partner Feargal Brennan said: “We are very happy to welcome Laura back to the firm. Laura began her legal career with ByrneWallace, progressing from trainee to a senior associate in our corporate practice, before working in-house as Head of Legal with a large multinational in the pharma sector for a number of years.
“During her career, Laura has gained tremendous commercial insight, industry knowledge, and legal expertise from working both in practice and in-house, making her a very valuable addition to the team and our clients.”
Head of Technology Group Victor Timon commented, “We are looking forward to drawing upon Laura’s unique expertise which will complement and further strengthen our technology offering. The technology landscape is constantly evolving, and as a team we have been continuously developing and proactively adapting our range of services to ensure that we can continue to pre-empt our clients’ needs, and deliver excellent advice and service.
Greene adds, “I am delighted to be re-joining ByrneWallace LLP as a partner in the Technology Group, and I am particularly looking forward to advising clients across developing areas such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, block chain and the metaverse.”
Barry Cudmore, Chief Executive Officer
Aviva Life & Pensions
Pictured: Barry Cudmore, CEO, Aviva Life & Pensions
Aviva Life & Pensions has announced the appointment of Barry Cudmore as Chief Executive Officer. Cudmore was previously the Chief Financial Officer at UK insurer LV. He has extensive experience in senior executive roles over a period of 25 years in a number of European insurance markets, including Group Chief Financial Officer at Athora Holding and CEO of Aegon Ireland. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries, having studied Actuarial and Financial Studies at University College Dublin.
Mark O’Donoghue, Chief Executive Officer
Ding
Ding, the international mobile top-up platform, has announced that Mark O’Donoghue will join the company as Chief Executive. He will take over from Ding’s Founder and Chief Executive, Mark Roden, who is to step down after 17 years and will remain a director, shareholder, and advisor to the company.
In addition, the Company also announces the appointment of Duncan Tatton-Brown as Chairman, further strengthening the Ding leadership team. Duncan is currently Chairman of Oxford Nanopore Technologies and was previously the CFO of Ocado Group Plc. Duncan currently sits on the Board of New York Stock Exchange listed company, Cazoo Group and on the Board of Trainline plc, where he serves as Chair of the Audit Committee. He also chairs the online travel agent, Loveholidays.
In May 2023, Ding passed the significant milestone of having sent $5bn of top-ups, enabling people all over the world to stay connected with loved ones, and has grown to have topped-up more than 100m mobile phones.
Mark Roden commented; “In 2006, we set out on a mission to address a real need – how people separated from their loved ones could stay connected to those back home. I am very proud to say that Ding is now trusted by millions of people worldwide and contributes significantly to the economic and social welfare of so many customers throughout emerging markets. I would like to thank our entire Ding team for making the company what it is today, and I am very confident that in Mark O’Donoghue we have an outstanding leader who will take Ding to the next stage of its incredible growth. I also look forward to working alongside Duncan Tatton-Brown and the rest of the Board as Ding enters a new strategic phase.”
Commenting on the appointments, Ian Gascoigne, Partner at Pollen Street Capital said; “We would like to thank Mark for his leadership from his founding of Ding in 2006, through its rapid growth to become the global market leader that it is today, with millions of customers around the world. Mark has built a global platform that will stand the test of time. On behalf of the entire Board, we would like to wish him well and we are delighted that he will continue as an advisor and Non-Executive Director.”
The new Chief Executive, Mark O’Donoghue, is joining Ding from the Inspired Education Group, where he served as Chief Executive leading the creation of its online division from scratch, through acquisitions and the execution of scale-up strategies which has led the division to an eightfold increase in profitability over 3 years. Prior to Inspired Education, O’Donoghue served in various senior leadership roles including as COO at Travel Counsellors and CEO at AVADO Learning.
Mark O’Donoghue, Chief Executive Designate; “Ding is a company that has purpose at its heart and meets a real need in the world. I am delighted to take on this role and I look forward to working with the incredible team to bring Ding to the next phase of growth.”
Alongside the new external appointments, Jonathan Rockett has been promoted to Managing Director and will continue his responsibilities for finance as Chief Financial Officer. He will also serve as Head of Partnerships. Jonathan joined Ding in 2013 as Head of Finance, before taking up the mantle of CFO in January 2018. Prior to joining Ding, Jonathan held senior positions at Paddy Power and PWC.
Stephen O’Driscoll, Director of Life and Pensions,
MyLifeCover
Pictured: Stephen O’Driscoll, Director of Life and Pensions, MyLifeCover
MyLifeCover has announced the appointment of Stephen O’Driscoll as Director of Life and Pensions. O’Driscoll will oversee the operations of the Life, Pensions, and Investment division of MyLifeCover. He originally started his career in financial services as a member of the MyLifeCover team and is now returning to the company having spent time as a Financial Planning Consultant in Cornmarket Group, where he provided advice mainly to public servants and their families. O’Driscoll also worked as a Wealth Manager at Bank of Ireland, where he managed investments and provided financial planning services to high-net-worth individuals.
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