Export Development Canada (EDC) has appointed Eric Siegel, the agency’s chief operating officer (COO), as acting president.

The appointment follows the departure of Rob Wright, who has now assumed the role of deputy minister, department of finance.

Siegel joined EDC in 1979 and served in increasingly senior roles focused initially on EDC’s lending programmes.

In 1988, he became general manager for EDC’s medium-term insurance programmes. After leading an extensive corporate restructuring between 1993 and 1995, Siegel was appointed senior vice-president of medium and long-term financial services and subsequently executive vice-president in 1997.

Siegel was named COO in September 2005, assuming overall leadership for EDC’s core business teams.