Tyco International Ltd. reported today it has named former PepsiCo Inc. executive Arun Nayar, 57, as the Bermuda-based conglomerate’s senior vice president and treasurer.

Nayar, who will work from Princeton, N.J., recently served as Purchase-based PepsiCo’s chief financial officer of operations.

MBIA Inc., the Armonk-based bond insurer hit hard by the subprime mortgage crisis, announced yesterday that it will eliminate 48 jobs as part of a restructuring plan.

All of the cuts will take place in MBIA’s insurance business. Many of the affected employees will move into different jobs, including the company’s asset management business that is not affected by the workforce reorganization, according to the company.

Jay Brown, MBIA chairman and chief executive officer, said that adjusting the company’s work force is critical as MBIA looks to improve its financial position and restore faith with investors.

“As much as I love my job, making tough decisions that negatively impact our employees is, without a doubt, the hardest part,� Brown said in a written statement. “In making these decisions, we have tried to do so quickly and in a manner that is as painless and generous as possible, with the same treatment for every employee who will leave our organization.�

MBIA’s stock has fallen 82 percent during the past year as the market for subprime mortgages to riskier borrowers weakened and foreclosures soared. Investors have been concerned that the problems for MBIA and other financial companies may not be over with the country mired in the weakest housing market in 25 years. For MBIA, the pain intensified in the fourth quarter when it reported a loss of $2.3 billion, the worst quarterly loss in its history.

MBIA and other bond insurers have taken big write-downs on the mortgage debt that they had insured.

“The MBIA senior management team has moved decisively in the last three weeks to assess the talent and workforce composition required to address our immediate needs and the skills that will allow us to compete effectively in the future,� Brown added.

Even though it is eliminating positions, MBIA said that it also is recruiting 15 to 20 new workers for “strategic roles� and filling another 10 open positions.

MBIA reported 483 employees worldwide as of Dec. 31, including 365 in its insurance business and 118 in asset management. Most of the eliminated positions will be in Armonk, where MBIA has 416 employees.

Shares of MBIA fell 58 cents to $11.60 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Tremont Capital Management, a Rye-based manager of fund of hedge fund portfolios, has named Susan Crotty the managing director of investment management services. Crotty was formerly senior vice president at Callan Associates, a consulting firm based in San Francisco.

The Reader’s Digest Association Inc., the iconic magazine publisher based in Chappaqua, yesterday named former More magazine Executive Editor Barbara O’Dair to the post of executive editor at Reader’s Digest.

At More, O’Dair worked with current Reader’s Digest Editor-in-Chief Peggy Northrop. O’Dair has held senior posts at Teen People, Details and Entertainment Weekly magazines, among others, Reader’s Digest said.

O’Dair will share duties with fellow executive editor Tom Prince, who joined the company last month.

Todd C. McCarty has been named senior vice president of global human resources at Reader’s Digest Association Inc. in Chappaqua. Previously, McCarty was senior vice president of human resources at the pharmacy chain Rite Aid Corp.

MasterCard Inc., the Purchase-based credit card giant, said that executive W. Roy Dunbar is leaving the company. Dunbar, 46, has been president of MasterCard’s global technology and operations since 2004. He will leave on Jan. 31 to become chief executive officer of a company outside the payments industry. Details of his new job will be announced soon, according to MasterCard.

Gamco Investors Inc. named Raymond C. Avansino, former president and chief operating officer at Hilton Hotels Corp., to its board of directors, the Rye-based money manager said today.

A former Gamco board member, Avansino served from 2000 to May 2006.

Gamco Investors Inc. director John C. Ferrara resigned Monday from the company’s board of directors, according to a filing today with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Ferrara served as interim chief financial officer until July following the May departure of Chief Financial Officer Michael Anastasio.

Ferrara had served on the board of the Rye-based money manager since 1999.

For 67 years, Pleasantville Jewelers has been a place where customers buy gems for weddings, anniversaries or special occasions.

But in February, the store at 3 Wheeler Ave. is expected to close.

Michael Weinberg, the fourth owner of the store in its long history, said that the jeweler is still making money. But he is exiting the business to return to a marketing career. Corporate marketing had been his focus before he bought the jewelry store three years ago from Ben Nessim, who had owned it for 27 years.

“It was nice owning your own business,â€? Weinberg said. “But I miss marketing so much, working with big companies and coming up with promotions….I really wanted to get back to it. You really have to follow your dream.â€?

Leaving the jewelry business was not an easy decision, he added.

“The hardest part will be missing the people from the town,� Weinberg said. “Everyone has been so nice. Pleasantville is such a great town.�

Weinberg said it is possible that he may sell the store.

“It is up in the air,� he said. “Hopefully, someone will buy it and it will stay a jewelry store. It would be great to carry on the tradition. We just don’t know yet.�

Weinberg said the the store is offering deep discounts as it looks to clear its remaining inventory.

“We have a ton of things to sell,� Weinberg said. “There is at least $500,000 in jewelry, diamonds, gold and all that. We have a good 30 days to make it go all away.�

Bruce Ritell of Sleepy Hollow joined other shoppers in looking over the merchandise earlier this week.

“In the past, we have bought some nice pieces of jewelry here, mainly for my wife,� Ritell said. “We have done a lot of repairs here. I am sorry to see them go.�

Pleasantville-resident John Pizzarelli has been named chief executive at CIFG Holding Ltd., a Bermuda-based bond insurer, it said today.

The appointment was announced in connection with the completion of a $1.4 billion buyout of CIFG by two Paris-based bankers, Banque Populaire Group and Caisse d’Epargne Group.

Pizzarelli assumes his leadership duties as the company is evaluating its long-term strategic plan, CIFG said.

CIFG established its headquarters in Bermuda earlier this year.

Jacques R. Rolfo, who had served as CIFG’s chief executive, is no longer with the company, CIFG said.

Pizzarelli spent more than 20 years at Armonk-based MBIA Inc. as head of global infrastructure before moving to CIFG last spring, a spokesman said.

The Rockland County Board of Realtors recently installed its 2008 officers and directors. They are Raj Bajaj, president; Adam DiFrancesco, president-elect; Warren Switzler, secretary; Denise Murphy, treasurer; Nettie Price, immediate past president; Roberta Bangs, past president. Directors are Justine Aiello, Ben Glazer, Diane Wanamaker, Roland Hakim, Liz Rosenblatt, Marta Segarra-Allen, Linda Lipkins, Mike Nuzzo, Bill Thorne; Affiliates: Drew Kessler, Barry Dorfman.

ITT Corp., a defense contractor and manufacturer based in Harrison, named Robert L. Ellis as its chief inclusion and diversity officer to oversee workplace diversity programs. Ellis, 56, joins ITT from Northrop Grumman, where he established the strategic diversity program for its electronic systems & integration division. He also served as head of strategic diversity for Northrop’s integrated systems sector for eight years.

PepsiCo Inc., the Purchase-based soft drink giant, appointed Dr. Mehmood Khan to the new position of chief scientific officer. Khan has more than 20 years of experience in the medical and pharmaceutical field. Most recently, he served as president of Takeda Pharmaceuticals Global Research and Development Center. He previously worked at the Mayo Clinic as the director of diabetes, endocrinology and nutrition clinical trial unit. At PepsiCo, Khan will oversee the company’s long-term research strategy.

Juma Technology Corp. of Farmingdale recently named two Westchester County residents to its senior management team. Anthony M. Servidio of Bronxville was appointed chairman and chief executive officer. Joseph Fuccillo of Pleasantville was promoted to president and will also continue in the position of chief technology officer.

One to One Leadership, a management consulting firm based in Pelham, announced that it has named Sean O’Neil as its new principal. O’Neil will oversee the design of new corporate training formats, including Leading Lawyers, a program that helps lawyers improve their leadership skills. O’Neil previously spent three years managing real estate transactions for Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s New York office.

Schott Corp., a specialty glass manufacturer based in Elmsford, said that Gerald J Fine has been named president and chief executive officer, effective Jan. 1. Fine came aboard as vice president/business development of Schott North America Inc. in June after a previous career at Corning. Fine most recently was an engineering professor at Boston University. Fine earned a bachelor’s degree at Amherst College and a Ph.D. at the California Institute of Technology.

Frank W. Whalley has been named the vice president of operations for United Parcel Service’s metro New York district. The job includes the oversight of more than 4,600 employees and eight facilities serving Manhattan, the Bronx and southern Westchester County. Whalley began his career with the company in 1976 as a part-time loader in the west Long Island district. He most recently was district manager in northern Ohio.

Hudson Valley Holding Corp. of Yonkers said that Bruno J. Gioffre has retired from the boards of the holding company and its subsidiary, Hudson Valley Bank. Gioffre, who was elected a director in November 2006, retired to devote more time to “personal pursuits,� according to the bank. Gioffre, a resident of New Canaan, Ct., is the former chairman of Sound Federal Savings Bank in White Plains. Hudson Valley Bank, with more than $2 billion in assets, has 24 branches in Westchester, Rockland, the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens and Stamford, Ct. Bank officials could not be reached for comment about their plans for a board member to replace Gioffre.

JMT Consulting Group, a Patterson company that helps nonprofit organizations with their technology systems, said Kent Hollrah has been named president. Hollrah will report to Jacqueline Tiso, the chief executive and and founder of the company. He has more than 25 years of experience of management with technology companies, JMT said. Hollrah most recently served as president and chief operating officer at Periscope Holdings, an Austin-Texas-based company. He is a former chief executive of MIP Inc., also of Austin.

The man who was the first chairman of the Rockland County chapter of SCORE, an organization that provides volunteer counseling to small businesses, has been named district director for the Lower Hudson Valley and Long Island region. Mark D. Rothenberg, who has been with SCORE since 2003 and an assistant district director since last year, will seek to expand the region’s counseling programs. Rothenberg has more than 40 years of business, management and operational experience in retail and distribution on Long Island and worked as chief operating officer of United Water New York.