Financial Lines

Optio continues senior hires with Sheppard named head of FL

Specialty MGA Optio Group has continued to build out its senior team with the appointment of Oliver Sheppard as head of financial lines.

Arch promotes Munns to succeed Chu as head of executive assurance

Arch Insurance International has appointed Maggie Munns as head of its executive assurance division, which covers commercial D&O, SME D&O, financial institutions and transactional risk.

Ageas Re to enter financial lines at 1.1 as deployable capacity jumps 25%

Ageas Re, the reinsurance arm of Belgian insurance group Ageas, will double its maximum line size in property cat to €25mn at the upcoming 1 January renewals, with the ambitious carrier also targeting a financial lines reinsurance build-out after the successful entry into casualty earlier this year.

Marsh: US rate increases slow to 1% in Q2 with varying trends across sectors

Insurance rates in the US increased by 1 percent in the second quarter of 2024, a deceleration from the 3 percent rise in the first three months of this year, with varying trends across different sectors, according to the latest Marsh Global Insurance Market Index.

Price Forbes adds Gallagher’s Calder-Smith to build FL offering in APAC

Price Forbes has bolstered its regional capabilities with the appointment of Antonio Calder-Smith to its Singapore unit, The Insurer can reveal.

CFC updates fintech cover to include crime, PI, E&O and pre-investigation costs

CFC has updated its fintech insurance cover in the UK, Canada and Australia to include increasing professional service and technology exposures faced by the sector.

Nexus adds Barents Re’s Willett to lead financial lines expansion

Nexus Underwriting, the specialty MGA platform of Kentro Capital, has appointed Steve Willett as head of development.

Aviva expands financial lines team led by CNA Hardy’s Singh as UW director

UK insurer Aviva has unveiled a series of hires to its financial lines team, overseen by newly appointed underwriting director Ramesh Singh.

AIG sees signs of a floor in financial lines

Significant softening in financial lines – largely led by public D&O – has been a dominant theme of the last year or more and was an offsetting factor in both NPW growth and rate at AIG.

Allianz forms in-house claims team for financial lines

Allianz Commercial has formed a new UK-based in-house financial lines claims team to support its D&O and professional indemnity propositions.

Canopius unveils investment management cover for asset managers

Specialty (re)insurer Canopius has launched a new investment management cover for asset managers in response to the shifting risk landscape in the highly regulated sector.

HDI Global Specialty takes majority stake in Falcon from Griffin Highline

HDI Global Specialty has taken a majority stake in Falcon Risk Services, buying out founding investor Griffin Highline’s stake, with the firm saying it expects the financial lines and cyber-focused MGA to be “a major growth driver” for it in the US.

K2’s Aegis Financial Lines launches as Lloyd’s coverholder with Leach at helm

Aegis Financial Lines in partnership with sister company K2 Financial has been approved as a Lloyd’s coverholder and has been launched under the leadership of former Hanover Group executive Kevin Leach.

QBE Re bolsters leadership with three global product heads

QBE Re has appointed three global product heads including Salvatore Sama for casualty, Jane Farren for financial professional lines, and Derek Durst for cyber.

MS Amlin launches Middle East financial lines cover

MS Amlin has launched financial lines cover in the Middle East, with senior financial lines underwriter Tom Horswill named as lead.

CAC Specialty adds Axis’ Neumann as managing claims counsel for FL

Ryan Specialty creates international financial lines MGU led by Bouloux

Ryan Specialty has combined its EmergIn Risk, StartPoint Executive Risks, Ryan Specialty Nordics and Capital Bay units with the professional liability portfolios housed in its national programs division to create a new MGU called Ryan Financial Lines.

Distinguished Programs secures A++ RSUI paper for executive lines launch

Distinguished Programs will begin accepting submissions from wholesalers in the new year for its Ryan Becker-led Distinguished Executive Lines business after entering into a strategic partnership with RSUI subsidiary Covington Specialty Insurance Company, E&S Insurer can reveal.