Markel Group said early Monday that Simon Wilson is the new chief executive officer of Markel Insurance.

Markel Insurance includes the company’s primary underwriting businesses of Markel Specialty, Markel International, and Markel Global Reinsurance. Wilson was president of Markel International.

The move is “part of a broader effort to sharpen the company’s customer focus by empowering each of their teams to serve the distinct needs of their respective markets,” Markel said in a statement.

Tom Gayner, CEO of Markel Group, said Richmond, Va.-based Markel’s growth to a global specialty insurer, “brought new challenges and unnecessary complexity, as confirmed by our ongoing board-led business review.”

“At times, we unintentionally made it harder for our people to serve our customers,” Gaynor continued in a statement. “I’m confident in Simon’s vision for growing this fortress of an insurance business through teams that are focused on serving the customers and markets that they know best.”

Wilson has more than 20 years of experience scaling the operations of large specialty insurance organizations, said Markel. Wilson joined the group in 2010 to lead the international business development, and he is credited as the “primary architect” of Markel International’s expansion beyond London. In January 2020, Wilson was appointed managing executive of global strategy for Markel, and in 2021 he was appointed president of Markel International.

As part of the transition, Jeremy Noble is leaving the company. Noble was president of Markel’s insurance operations since late 2022, when Gayner was named sole CEO upon the retirement of co-CEO Richard R. Whitt III. Previously, Noble was the group’s senior vice president and chief financial officer

Markel said the leadership teams of subsidiaries State National and Nephila will continue to operate with a high degree of autonomy and will now report directly into Markel Group, alongside Markel Insurance.

Tony Markel to Retire as Vice Chairman of Markel Group

Markel Group also said that Anthony F. (Tony) Markel, currently vice chairman of the board, will not seek re-election and will retire as a director of the company at the end of the annual meeting of shareholders in May. He will assume the honorary position of Chairman Emeritus of the Board.

Tony Markel joined the company in 1964 and eventually became its president and chief operating officer in 1992. He joined the board in 1978 and became vice chair in 2009. Tony Markel together with Alan Kirshner and Steve Markel, led the effort to take the company public in 1986. Under their leadership, Markel grew from approximately $60 million in total assets in 1986 to roughly $25 billion in 2016 when they turned over the reins to the next generation of Markel leaders.

“Tony is larger than life and it would be hard to overstate his impact on this company,” said Steve Markel, chairman of the board. “He was not just a highly effective operator and leader, he was the heartbeat of Markel with an unmatched ability to motivate and connect with people.”

Jon Michael is appointed to Markel’s Board of Directors, effective March 15. Michael was the chairman of RLI Corp. from 2011 to 2024 and he was president and CEO of RLI from 2001 to 2021. Michael held various positions at RLI after joining in 1982, including president and chief operating officer, executive vice president, and chief financial officer.