Matthew Royal to join Unum as head of Internal Audit

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Unum Group (NYSE: UNM) today announced that J. Matthew Royal has joined the company as vice president and chief auditor. He succeeds Nicholas Desiderio, who is retiring after more than 22 years with Unum.

In his new capacity, Royal will be responsible for ensuring that company controls are adequate and meet or exceed regulatory requirements. He will also oversee Unum’s special investigative unit.

Royal joins Unum from KPMG LLP, where he most recently served as a director in the firm’s Insurance Risk Advisory practice and had responsibility for assessing the effectiveness of internal audit functions and developing comprehensive risk assessments and risk-based internal audit plans. He also served as global director for one of KPMG’s largest insurance internal audit relationships.

Prior to joining KPMG in 2003, Royal was assistant vice president, International Specialty Operations, with Marsh Inc.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from University of Georgia and a master’s in business administration from New York University.

Royal will be based in Chattanooga, Tenn., and will report to Liston “Bo” Bishop, executive vice president and General Counsel, as well as to the Audit Committee of the company’s board of directors.

ABOUT UNUM GROUP

Unum Group (www.unum.com) is a leading provider of financial protection benefits in the United States and the United Kingdom. Unum’s portfolio includes disability, life, accident and critical illness coverage, which help protect millions of working people and their families in the event of an illness or injury. The company reported revenues of $10.3 billion in 2011, and its subsidiaries – Unum US, Colonial Life and Unum UK – provided more than $6 billion in benefits last year.