Friday was not a stellar debut for David Munro, the new chief of the Donald Gordon-founded insurer Liberty Group. The group's share price fell as much as 7% on the day he delivered his first set of interim results. Just more than two months into the job, the former head of Standard Bank's corporate and investment bank knows he faces a huge challenge trying to change sentiment on a group that continues to underperform. Over the past five years Liberty's stock has weakened 5.9% compared with an All Share index that has gained more than 39%. It has underperformed rivals Sanlam and Old Mutual and has lost some of its higher- end customers to them and to Discovery. An analyst said that the group seemed to hit a roadblock every way it turned. Munro took control of the 60-year-old insurer at the end of May after the abrupt departure of former CEO Thabo Dloti, following a disagreement with the board over the direction of the company. As part of his plans to put Liberty on a better trajector...
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