Although the insurance market is awash with capacity and competition, two new specialty companies—a re/insurer and a broker—formed earlier this year, aiming to create something new and different for their clients.
Executive Summary
Having a great professional legacy in re/insurance can be a major advantage when starting a new venture. So can being free from the legacy technology and operations that characterize incumbents. Industry veterans Stephen Catlin, Paul Brand and Steve McGill see opportunities for their new ventures—a specialty re/insurer and a boutique broker—amid the industry consolidation and commoditization. The keys will be getting the right technology and talent and keeping it simple.First, well-known industry veterans Stephen Catlin and Paul Brand, colleagues for 32 years, announced on April 30 they had launched specialty re/insurer Convex Group Ltd. in Bermuda. Then, just a few days later, another industry veteran, Steve McGill, said he had formed a London-based specialty broker, McGill & Partners.
The timing was coincidental, but the executives’ messages are similar. The key for both companies is the fresh start they are taking, with legacy-free operations and the use of modern technology to help them keep their cost bases down. At the same time, their strong industry reputations helped them obtain substantial support from private equity investors.
