Athene Names Matthew Michelini as President

Athene Holding Ltd. announced Monday the promotion of Matthew Michelini to president, leading the firm’s key growth initiatives, including its efforts to sell lifetime income products to retirees.

Michelini steps up from his role as head of Asia-Pacific at Apollo Global Management, a role he has held since 2021. He succeeds Grant Kvalheim in the role, who was the firm’s previous president and was elevated to CEO in 2025. Michelini will report to Kvalheim.

Having joined Apollo, the parent company of Athene, in 2006, Michelini participated in the creation of multiple growth initiatives at Apollo, including its hybrid value business, dedicated insurance platform and financial institutions group, as well as the formation of Athene.

“Athene has an extraordinary opportunity to address the growing and urgent demand for guaranteed retirement income,” Michelini said in a statement. “Having worked closely with the Athene team since the very first days of the company, I am energized to take on this leadership role as we strive to create and provide simpler, easier to deliver, and a more diverse set of retirement solutions.”

Before joining Apollo, Michelini was an investment banker at Lazard LLC.

Michelini earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Princeton University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.