It’s time for the weekly round up of senior appointments across the sector;
NFU MUTUAL
John Deane has been announced as the new Chair of NFU Mutual, taking over from Jim McLaren MBE, who will step down from his role on 31 December, 2026.
Jim McLaren will end his term after 15 years on NFU Mutual’s Board and seven years as Chair. During his tenure, NFU Mutual has continued to grow sustainably while supporting its members and the wider rural community through significant geopolitical challenges.
He will also leave his roles as Chair and Trustee of the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust, a body which supports charities in the UK connected with agriculture, the countryside and the insurance industry.
John Deane, who will become NFU Mutual Chair on 1 January 2027, has over 30 years’ board experience in mutual, listed and private companies, and has been a member of NFU Mutual’s Board since 2022.
An experienced director, John has held senior positions at several financial services businesses, including mutual insurer Royal London, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries.
AVID INSURANCE
Avid Insurance and Landmark Underwriting have appointed Stuart Davies as Non-Executive Chairman.
Davies brings more than 30 years’ experience across the London and international insurance markets, spanning senior executive, private equity, and non-executive roles.
His career includes 11 years at Aegis, where he led the turnaround of the Lloyd’s business and subsequently delivered sustained profitable growth. He later became Group Chief Executive of Canopius, with responsibility for its international specialty insurance operations, including its US business. He currently serves as Non-Executive Director at Milestone Risk Solutions a Strategic Committee Member at Momentum Insurance. His previous non-executive roles include Apollo, where he supported its sale to US specialty insurer Skyward Specialty.
COALITION
- Deacon Lee joins as an Enterprise Underwriter. He was a cyber underwriter at Allianz for two years and before that, held commercial and cyber risk roles at Aon.
- Robert Granger joins as a Senior Risk Consultant, Enterprise. He brings a background spanning cybersecurity, defence, and financial services, including senior cyber roles in the Royal Air Force and private-sector security consulting.
APEX GROUP
Apex Group Ltd. (“Apex Group”), a global financial services provider with more than $3.5 trillion in assets serviced, has announced the appointment of Nick Tomadakis as Chief Product Officer.
Nick joins Apex Group with more than 20 years of experience leading product strategy, innovation and digital transformation across global financial institutions and fintech businesses. Reporting directly to Apex Group Founder and CEO Peter Hughes, he will lead the Group’s global product strategy, overseeing the continued evolution of Apex Group’s technology-enabled solutions, and helping drive the firm’s growth agenda.
Nick has held senior fintech product leadership roles at Rakuten Viber, Revolut, Barclays and Visa Europe, and most recently served as Chief Product & Growth Officer at DCM Systems, where he focused on tokenisation and next-generation payment infrastructure. Throughout his career, he has built and scaled products serving millions of users across multiple markets, led large-scale transformation initiatives and launched market-leading solutions spanning payments, digital banking, regulatory technology, artificial intelligence, digital assets and tokenisation. His experience combines deep financial services and technology expertise with a strong track record of delivering innovation in highly regulated environments.
SWISS RE CORPORATE SOLUTIONS
Effective September 21, 2026, Caitlin McGrath will assume the role of Head of E&S US for Swiss Re Corporate Solutions.
Caitlin has been with Swiss Re for 5 years and brings more than 17 years of specialty and E&S insurance experience across underwriting, brokerage, and portfolio management. Since joining Swiss Re Corporate Solutions in 2021, she has led North America Crisis Management and has established the business an established strong position in the US product recall and contamination insurance market.
“Caitlin’s appointment underscores our commitment to the US E&S market and the importance of this business to Swiss Re Corporate Solutions,” said Adrian Hall, CEO US, Swiss Re Corporate Solutions. “Caitlin brings deep specialty expertise, strong broker and client relationships and a proven ability to lead teams through change. Our clients and brokers can expect to continue receiving the same high level of support, expertise, and partnership from our US E&S team as we build on the strong foundation already in place.”
Caitlin will also continue to oversee the North America Crisis Management team on an interim basis while we identify her successor, helping ensure continuity for employees, brokers and clients.
HDI GLOBAL
As part of its strategic repositioning in the United States under the Xcelerate29 strategy, Corporate & Specialty insurer HDI Global US has announced the appointment of Uwe Schoberth as Chief Commercial Officer (CCoO) of HDI Global US.
Reporting to Shadi Albert, Chief Executive Officer of HDI Global US, Schoberth will lead the company’s Distribution & Broker Management and Marketing & Communications functions. In this role, he will help advance HDI’s commercial strategy, strengthen its market presence and deepen relationships with brokers and clients across the United States.
Schoberth joins HDI with more than 30 years of experience leading distribution strategy, broker engagement and market development for recognized organizations across the global insurance industry. His appointment further strengthens HDI Global US’s leadership team as the company continues to prioritize long-term growth in the US It also follows HDI Global’s strong H1 2026 performance and underscores the company’s focused investment in the US market.
ING
In his new role, Tom will be responsible for shaping ING’s global insurance strategy and coordinating activities across key markets. Working closely with regional teams and local sector experts, he will help clients access ING’s international network.
Tom joins ING with more than two decades of experience in insurance banking. Most recently, he was Managing Director and Head of Insurance for Europe and Asia at CIBC. Before that, he spent over 20 years at HSBC, where he held several senior leadership positions in insurance coverage, including Head of Insurance Coverage for Asia-Pacific. He has advised insurance clients across Europe and Asia on financing, capital and strategic priorities throughout his career.
Lauren joins ING from HSBC, where she led insurance and financial institutions coverage in the Netherlands. She brings more than ten years’ experience advising insurers and other financial institutions across multiple regions, having also held Director roles in Hong Kong and London. As EMEA Lead Insurance, she will oversee the execution of ING’s regional sector strategy and growth ambitions.
CONDUIT UNDERWRITING
Conduit Holdings Limited, the ultimate parent company of Conduit Re, a Bermuda-based multi-line reinsurance business, is pleased to announce three senior appointments that further strengthen Conduit Re’s expertise across US and global property reinsurance. Aaron Coates has been appointed head of property, Mark Mitchell head of US property and Dacotah Baksh has been appointed property underwriter.
Aaron brings more than 25 years of reinsurance and retrocession experience across the Bermuda, London and insurance linked securities (ILS) markets to Conduit Re. He was most recently SVP and senior underwriter, global catastrophe, at PartnerRe. As head of property, Aaron will oversee Conduit Re’s property portfolio and team.
Mark joins the Conduit property team from PartnerRe, where most recently he was SVP and lead underwriter, North America catastrophe. He brings more than 15 years of reinsurance industry experience in Bermuda, with a particular focus on the North American property market. As head of US property, Mark will oversee Conduit Re’s US property portfolio.
Dacotah joins Conduit Re from PartnerRe and brings more than eight years of reinsurance experience in Bermuda. Most recently, she served as AVP and underwriter at PartnerRe, where she contributed to the global catastrophe portfolio.
Stephen Postlewhite, chief underwriting officer, said: “We are delighted to welcome Aaron, Mark and Dacotah to Conduit. Their broad expertise in the property reinsurance market will be invaluable as we execute on our underwriting strategy.”
GALLAGHER
Gallagher, the global insurance broking and risk management company, today announced the appointment of Paul Jeroen van de Grampel as Chief Commercial Officer EMEA, within its fast-expanding and multidisciplinary Private Equity and M&A practice (PEMA).
Based in London with an EMEA-wide remit, Paul will be responsible for driving the development of Gallagher’s PEMA client proposition, relationship management and the effective distribution of specialist products and services to private capital funds, corporate acquirers and wider M&A advisory communities.
Having spent more than 25 years in diverse roles across private equity, M&A, asset management and insurance, Paul brings a unique blend of global experience and expertise to Gallagher’s PEMA practice to support and sustain its strong growth trajectory. He previously worked as a corporate M&A lawyer, served as a partner in a PE fund, held senior PEMA roles at another major insurance broker and worked, more recently, with international litigation funders, PE funds and start-ups. Paul has direct and extensive experience of cross-border transactions and contingent risks within private capital, M&A, litigation, and fund structuring that sit central to PEMA’s client offering.
Gallagher also announced the appointment of Steve Munday as a managing partner of natural resources. In his new role Steve will be responsible for further developing Gallagher’s client portfolio, services and capability in its fast-expanding renewables practice area.
Steve joins Gallagher from WTW, having led its global renewable practice and London renewables team for the last ten years. He has specialised in renewable risks for over 20 years, and the energy, construction and project finance sectors for over 30 years, having started his career as an underwriter.
He has deep experience of independent power producer, power & utility plus oil & gas companies operating globally and brings extensive connections and insights in the developing renewable, clean and energy transition sectors. He will report to CEO of natural resources, Julian Raven and work alongside Duncan Gordon who is head of renewable energy at Gallagher.
CRYPTO FINANCE GmbH
Crypto Finance (Deutschland) GmbH has appointed Laura Hermann as Managing Director, effective July 1, 2026. In her new role, she will help drive the company’s strategic growth, with a focus on expanding its presence across the MiCAR-regulated European market, strengthening strategic client relationships, and further enhancing the sales organization.
Laura Hermann brings extensive experience from the international financial services and asset management industry. Before joining Crypto Finance, she held various positions at BlackRock in Germany, where she led business development for BlackRock’s technology solutions across the DACH region and Eastern Europe. Prior to that, she served as Executive Managing Director at fintech company Verifino.
HOWDEN EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
Howden Employee Benefits has appointed Hannah Proctor as Global Benefits Management (GBM) Team Leader, reporting to Anne Terry, Managing Director of Howden’s Multinational Client Practice.
Hannah brings more than a decade of employee benefits experience, including four years working abroad in Singapore with Mercer Marsh Benefits, advising multinational employers across the UK, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Throughout that time, she has built strong relationships and a genuine record of collaboration with clients and colleagues in countries across the world. Her entrepreneurial, energised approach fits naturally with Howden’s culture.
Anne Terry, Managing Director, Multinational Client Practice, said: “Hannah has built a strong track record for this role: a decade in employee benefits, four of those years working abroad with multinational clients, and relationships across many countries built on real collaboration. She has exactly the entrepreneurial, energised approach that fits our culture at Howden. I’m excited to have her join us in London, and I know she’ll be a great representation of what makes Howden different.”
TOKIO MARINE
Tokio Marine HCC (TMHCC) International, a member of the Tokio Marine HCC group of companies based in Houston, Texas, has announced the appointment of Nicolas Pelletier as Head of Distribution – Europe, effective 1 September 2026.
In this newly created role, Nicolas will be responsible for strengthening distribution relationships and supporting growth opportunities across Continental Europe. Reporting to Stuart Heath, Head of Distribution – International, he will work closely with TMHCC International’s European business units to better connect the company’s offering with the needs of brokers and clients across the region.
The appointment builds on the distribution structure introduced by TMHCC International last year, when Stuart was appointed Head of Distribution – International, and reflects the company’s continued focus on greater collaboration across its specialty business.
ZURICH INSURANCE SINGAPORE
Zurich Insurance Company (Singapore) Ltd. (“Zurich Singapore”) today announced two senior appointments to strengthen its Commercial Insurance leadership in Asia Pacific: Patrick Fyson as Head of Property, Asia, and Dylan Bryant as Head of Zurich Multinational & Captives, Asia Pacific. Both appointees are based in Singapore.
Head of Property, Asia
Patrick joins as Head of Property, Asia. In this role, he will lead Zurich’s Property underwriting function across Asia, with a focus on shaping and executing the underwriting strategy, driving sustainable growth in line with the region’s ambitions, and further strengthening Zurich’s in‑country underwriting capabilities.
Head of Zurich Multinational & Captives, Asia Pacific
Dylan has been appointed to the newly created role of Head of Zurich Multinational & Captives, Asia Pacific, which brings together regional leadership of Zurich’s multinational programmes and captive solutions. He will lead the Multinational & Captives business across Asia Pacific, overseeing outward, inward and international programmes, as well as captive fronting and related solutions, and will drive strategy, performance and service delivery in the region while strengthening Asia Pacific’s contribution to Zurich’s global multinational and captives network.
LIBERTY SPECIALTY
Liberty Specialty Markets (Liberty), part of Liberty Mutual Insurance Group, announces the appointment of Mylène Martin-Ahmine as Chief Operating Officer, Liberty Europe. Martin-Ahmine will report into Pierre-Edouard Fraigneau, President, Liberty Europe.
Mylène brings over 20 years’ experience in the insurance sector. She joins Liberty from Swiss Re Paris where she was most recently the Head of Operations for France and Spain, responsible for overseeing end-to-end administration and accounting of insurance contracts for large corporate clients across all lines of business. She has a strong background aligning Operations with business goals in client-focused environments along with delivering operational efficiency.
Mylène will be a key member of the Liberty Operations leadership team and the Liberty Europe Leadership Team. She will be responsible for driving operational excellence across Liberty’s Europe region, with a focus on greater consistency, efficiency, and continuous improvement.
NORTHSTANDARD
NorthStandard has appointed Helen Barden Head of External Affairs, underlining its continuing commitment to ensuring policymakers understand the critical role P&I plays in global shipping on behalf of its Members.
Previously NorthStandard Director – External Affairs, Barden formally took up the new post on 1st August 2026. She succeeds Mike Salthouse, on his retirement from the Club after 34 years of service.
Barden joined the External Affairs team in 2024 soon after its creation, bringing to the post over 11 years of FD&D experience with the Club, where assignments had included a pivotal role in setting up its Navigating Decarbonisation group. She has since worked tirelessly to increase understanding of the contribution P&I makes to keeping global trade moving, to foster collaborative relationships and to drive policy work – including on sanctions.
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