Agman launches E&S-focused MGA Aurenity led by Davies

Agman has added to its growing insurance platform with a $10mn investment to launch tech-enabled MGA Aurenity, which will target the E&S market and be led by the Chicago-based investment firm’s operating partner Nick Davies as CEO, The Insurer can reveal.

Former Brit Americas president Davies joined Agman last May as an operating partner with a remit to grow its insurance business.

Aurenity will use cutting-edge underwriting analytics to set technical pricing for E&S exposures as it looks to deliver sustainable profitability to its carrier partners across the cycle.

The start-up has also hired former Travelers executive Patrick Safino as COO and is understood to be in discussions with underwriting executives and teams as it prepares to add to its management and unveil its first product during Q1 2022.

The MGA will initially target casualty and professional lines products where there is dislocation between market and technical price and demand outstrips supply because of exposure and experience inflation, said the start-up in a statement confirming the launch.

Aurenity will also look to leverage technology that improves risk insights to make better-informed underwriting decisions and will invest in AI to take advantage of broader E&S opportunities.

Commenting on the launch, Agman founder and CEO Scott Silverman said: “Nick Davies is a rare blend of underwriter, executive and entrepreneur.

“With a proven track record in the US, Lloyd’s and Bermuda markets over 25 years, he is already attracting market-leading talent to Aurenity with the vision and relationships to execute a strategy of technology-led underwriting excellence.”

He added that Agman as an investment firm has been built around backing entrepreneurs.

Davies said that Aurenity will be “at the vanguard” of delivering the kind of sophisticated pricing that the market will expect from MGAs.

“Carriers and reinsurers are embracing data and analytics to optimise their portfolios, but MGA tech has principally solved for distribution over pricing. While automated process can now be delivered efficiently by certain SaaS providers, underwriting profit can’t be outsourced,” he continued.

The executive told this publication that Aurenity is currently in discussions with capacity providers including reinsurers. Aurenity will target entrepreneurial talent with a pedigree in delivering underwriting profitability.

Davies was an early employee of Brit in London and helped establish its property division, leading the carrier’s entry into the war and terrorism market after 9/11.

He then joined cat-focused Lloyd’s MGA Western Re Managers before rejoining Brit in 2009 as its first US employee, charged with building a full-scale operation in the Americas.

The platform grew to write more than $1.5bn of cumulative premium across an E&S and reinsurance book in the US and Bermuda markets.

Safino was previously vice president for strategy and execution for Travelers Personal Insurance and has also worked in Accenture’s insurance practice, specialising in the development and delivery of data solutions and pricing analytics.

Existing Agman insurance investments include tech-enabled workers’ compensation specialist Omaha National – which in November secured a preliminary A- rating following a $45mn fundraise in its transition to a full-stack carrier – along with broker and consulting firm Virtus.