Job Moves and Senior Appointments 26.10.2026 -

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It’s time for another round up of senior appointments news. As ever, apologies if we missed your announcement;

THOMAS CARROLL

Thomas Carroll, the independent insurance, risk and insurtech business, has promoted Terry Edwards to Divisional Director of its London office.

Terry joined Thomas Carroll in January this year as Account Director, bringing with him 30 years of insurance leadership experience, including senior roles at Marsh and Vista, as well as a tenure as Senior Partner at JLT Specialty. A specialist in UK and European commercial real estate, Terry has extensive experience supporting clients with complex and high-value portfolios. He is recognised for his ability to de-risk sophisticated insurance programmes and develop tailored solutions that respond to the evolving needs of the commercial real estate market.

MARSH

Andy Start CBE, former CEO of Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) and the UK’s National Armaments Director, has joined Marsh as Senior Advisor.

Andy brings extensive international leadership experience across the aerospace, space and defence sectors. He most recently served as CEO of DE&S for the UK Ministry of Defence from 2022 to 2026, during which time he also sat on the MOD Board and oversaw the establishment of the National Armaments Director Group.

In his new role, Andy will advise Marsh’s international businesses and global clients on strategy execution, risk and opportunity assessment, and leadership development. Drawing on his substantial leadership experience, he will provide independent counsel to senior leaders and clients as they make complex decisions across markets.

SPHERE

Insurance protection experts Sphere Assured have appointed Wahab Raja as Director of Protection. This is a new position which has been created following recent growth and the establishment of key strategic partnerships across wealth, legal and accountancy.

Wahab has more than 15 years’ experience in the UK protection market, with both insurers and brokers so knows the market inside out. His most recent role was Head of Protection at WillU and before that he spent almost 10 years at Vitality as a business consultant.

With his vast knowledge of medical due diligence and experience of working with high net worth corporate and private clients, Wahab is the perfect fit for Sphere Assured and its ambitious growth plans.

ACRISURE

Acrisure, a global fintech and UK insurance distribution leader, today announced the appointment of Andy Tedstone as Chief Executive Officer of its UK Retail business operations, effective in April 2027. Tedstone joins Acrisure with a career built on growing retail insurance businesses in the UK broking market over the last 30 years. As CEO of UK Retail, he will be responsible for driving the next phase of the business’s development, combining strong local leadership and specialist market expertise with Acrisure’s global scale, capabilities and access. He will focus on sustainable growth, deepening client relationships, and advancing the company’s commitment to helping colleagues provide better outcomes for individuals and businesses across the UK.

SOURCE

Source Insurance has appointed Simon Thomas as Managing Director, strengthening its leadership team as the business enters an exciting new phase of growth.

With more than 30 years’ experience across underwriting, broking and senior insurance leadership, Simon brings extensive market knowledge and a strong understanding of the needs of advisers and their clients. Having previously worked at Source, he also has an established connection with the business and its ambitions for the future. Alongside his new role at Source, Simon will continue as Managing Director of Protect Commercial.

OPEN GI

Open GI has announced the appointment of Jim Sadler as Chief Technology and Product Officer (CTPO), strengthening Open GI’s leadership team as it accelerates its transformation into a modern, AI-centric SaaS technology partner for the insurance industry. Jim brings more than 35 years’ experience in insurance and financial services and a proven track record of modernising technology, products and platforms. Joining on 4 November 2026, Jim will lead Open GI’s technology and product teams with a clear mandate to build a market leading modern SaaS platform, with greater configurability, embedded AI and faster innovation.

Jim’s appointment represents another important step in Open GI’s ambition to give brokers, MGAs and insurers simpler, smarter and more flexible technology that enables them to respond faster to a changing market.

Jim joins from AutoRek, a PE-backed financial services software business, where he led product, technology and operations. He was previously Group CEO of Finova, COO and Executive Board Director at insurance software provider SSP, and CTO and later Group CIO and COO at Xchanging. Jim began his career at Norwich Union and Aviva, latterly as General Insurance CIO.

NFU MUTUAL

Leading rural insurer NFU Mutual has announced Eamonn Flannagan as its new Non-Executive Director, effective from 1 November 2026.

A Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries, Eamonn has worked in multiple sectors of the financial services industry during a distinguished career spanning 40 years.

Beginning his career by qualifying as an actuary with Royal Life, Eamonn was a Director of Charterhouse Securities and went on to be appointed a Director and Head of European Insurance when the business became ING Barings Securities.

OAK GLOBAL

OAK Global, a leading global risk partner underwriting through two dedicated syndicates at Lloyd’s, has announced two senior leadership appointments as it continues to strengthen its enterprise-wide underwriting and risk management capabilities.

Fraser Scott has been promoted to Director of Underwriting Planning and Performance to lead the coordination of business planning and performance management for OAK Global’s underwriting portfolios across Lloyd’s’ Syndicates 2843 and 1440. He will bring together business planning and portfolio monitoring, working closely with Active Underwriters to support a coordinated approach to performance across the underwriting function as the business continues to grow.

John Coe has joined OAK Global as Chief Risk and Compliance Officer. He will be responsible for continuing to embed OAK Global’s risk ecosystem aligned with Lloyd’s and UK regulatory expectations, while enabling disciplined growth. He will play a central role in risk oversight, governance and board and regulatory engagement. John is a qualified Actuary with 20 years’ experience in the London Market and Lloyd’s and joins OAK Global from Munich Re Specialty – Global Markets, where he was Head of Enterprise Risk Management. He has previously held senior risk management roles at organisations including Asta Capital and Tokio Marine Kiln .

KALEPA

Kalepa, the leader in Professional Grade AI for insurance, today announced the appointment of Garrett Schlesinger as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Schlesinger will lead applied AI, research, engineering, data, and infrastructure as Kalepa expands its work with insurers across the globe.

Schlesinger has spent his career at the intersection of data, AI, and financial risk. Most recently, he was Vice President of Software Engineering at Affirm, where he spent 12 years. There, he helped build and scale the real-time underwriting systems at the heart of the business and led engineering teams through every stage of hypergrowth, from seed round to public company. He oversaw several major product launches, including the Affirm Card, and led the strategic re-architecture of core Affirm systems to support the business’s continued scale and reliability, which now processes over $50 billion in annual transaction volume.

PRICE FORBES

Price Forbes announces a leadership transition within its marine division, with Paul Kearns becoming Chairman of Marine and Anthony Burnell-Nugent assuming the role of Chief Executive Officer, Marine.

Paul has spent more than two decades with Price Forbes and has played a pivotal role in the growth and development of both the marine division and the wider business. As a member of the leadership team during a period of significant change and expansion, he has helped establish Price Forbes as a market-leading specialty broker. In his new role as chairman, he will continue to leverage his experience to support the marine leadership team as it focuses on the division’s long-term development and strategic direction.

Anthony joined Price Forbes in September 2026 from Miller Insurance Services, where he spent more than 13 years, holding the role of Head of Hull since 2018. He has also held senior roles at Gallagher and brings extensive market experience and a strong understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the marine sector.

VERVE RISK

Verve Risk Services (Verve), the specialist underwriting agency, announces Jason Clark, a leading professional liability underwriter, has joined the business to head up the new Verve Professions unit, expanding the firm’s mid-market errors & omissions (E&O) product offerings to include architects, engineers, law firms and accountants domiciled in the US.

Clark brings Verve 30 years of experience in US and International D&O and Professional Indemnity markets. He was previously Senior Underwriter – US and International E&O at Faraday Underwriting and a former of Head of Professional Indemnity at Allied World in London.

PINION INSURANCE

Pinion Insurance, a London-headquartered specialty insurance carrier formed earlier this year, has today announced the appointment of Robert Carlaw as Chief Technical Officer (CTO), strengthening its technology leadership as the company prepares to scale its data-driven insurance platform and underwriting operations.

Carlaw brings more than two decades of experience in software engineering and digital transformation, with a strong track record of delivering data-driven solutions that align technology initiatives with business objectives. He joins from SMS Solutions, where he served as Head of Architecture and Software Engineering, having previously held senior technology roles across range of technology-led and regulated industries.

Carlaw’s appointment reflects Pinion’s strategy of looking beyond the traditional insurance talent pool and attracting people who have built and operated modern technology environments in sectors where cloud infrastructure, automation, continuous delivery, and sophisticated data engineering are already embedded into the way businesses operate.

TL DALLAS

An independent insurance and risk management firm has strengthened its trade credit team with the appointment of Account Executive, Derek Chissell.

Derek joins Caledonia Dallas, which is part of the TL Dallas Group, following a 20-year career with Lloyds and Bank of Scotland. He is part of a group-wide 13-strong trade credit team and is based at the firm’s Elgin office. He will help businesses understand how trade credit insurance can protect against customer insolvency and non-payment, and work closely with colleagues at the group’s other offices in Shetland, Orkney, Inverness, Glasgow and Edinburgh to promote trade credit insurance across Scotland.

HDI GLOBAL

HDI Global has appointed Sheena Williams as Global Head of Sport, Leisure & Entertainment, effective immediately. The announcement supports HDI Global’s ambition to deepen its international Sport, Leisure & Entertainment (SLE) business and connect specialist capabilities across markets.

Sheena Williams brings extensive experience across the entire insurance distribution chain and has spent the past seven years at HDI Global, contributing broad industry expertise and a strong understanding of the insurance market. In her new role, Williams will focus on further amplifying HDI Global’s international SLE proposition by bringing together specialist expertise, products and market relationships from across the organisation. Priorities include deepening capabilities across the wider entertainment sector, including film, further leveraging established Sports Personal Accident (Sports PA) expertise, and pursuing targeted opportunities for geographic expansion. A further focus will be on expanding the breadth of HDI Global’s SLE proposition, particularly in entertainment and film.

HDI Global sees opportunities to utilise the intellectual property, specialist expertise, and client relationships already established across its international offices, connecting these capabilities to serve clients and brokers comprehensively.

ATHENEA

Athenea has announced the appointment of Duncan McPhee as Chief Executive Officer, effective 16 November 2026.

McPhee joins at a significant stage in the Group’s development as Brayleys Cars and Johnsons Cars continue their integration under the Athenea name and accelerate plans for future growth.

A highly respected automotive retail leader, McPhee brings more than two decades of industry experience, including senior leadership roles at Lookers and Hendy Group. During almost 16 years with Lookers, he held a number of operational and franchise leadership positions before being appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2021, leading a substantial national retail network and working closely with manufacturer partners across multiple brands.

SHEPHERDS FRIENDLY

Shepherds Friendly, the Manchester-based mutual society that this year celebrates its bicentennial, has announced the appointment of Dan Simpson as chief commercial officer.

Simpson has been Shepherds Friendly’s chief innovation officer since 2021, overseeing the mutual’s product strategy and strategic partnerships. This has included developing its distribution partnership with Octopus Legacy and introducing Alula Technologies’ underwriting platform to enhance the application experience for customers and their advisers.

In that time, Shepherds Friendly has significantly grown its intermediary footprint. The mutual partnered with Primis Mortgage Network to distribute its income protection products in May, followed by The Right DA Club in September. In recent years, it has also established partnerships with SimplyBiz, Next Intelligence, Mortgage Intelligence, Paradigm and The Money Group.

FIDUCIA

Leeds-based specialty insurance managing general agent (MGA) Fiducia has appointed Gary Cooke as development underwriter to support the continued international expansion of its product lines. Gary brings more than 45 years of London Market experience, primarily within the cargo sector, having held senior underwriting positions at Talbot, Marketform, Advent, WISE and, most recently, Rokstone.

Throughout his career he has built and developed substantial international cargo portfolios and established a strong reputation for broker development, business production and profitable underwriting. His primary focus at Fiducia is the continued development of the firm’s international facility to better support London market distribution and position the business for future growth.

ASCEND INSURANCE

Ascend Insurance Holdings (AIH) has announced the appointment of John Read as Group Development Director as it builds a national broking platform supporting independent regional brokers.

He will be responsible for driving AIH’s growth with a focus on creating a group centred on high-quality, independent commercial lines brokers across the UK.

His extensive experience in broker development, insurer relations, and strategic development plus his proven track record in partnering entrepreneurial brokers through growth and change will be a major asset for AIH as it expands.

MGT

MGT, the leading AI-native neo-insurer modernizing commercial P&C insurance, has announced the appointment of Joe Magdovitz as Head of Finance. As MGT’s first dedicated finance leader, Magdovitz will lead and grow the company’s finance function to support its continued rapid scale across new markets and distribution channels. He will report to MGT Co-Founder and Co-CEO Michael Topol.

Magdovitz brings more than 15 years of strategic finance experience across insurance, fintech and marketplace businesses. He most recently served as Chief Financial Officer of Vouch Insurance, where he led the sale of the company’s underwriting business to Hiscox, oversaw multiple equity and debt financings, and helped drive more than 3x growth in written premium during his tenure.