Asia Pacific:Specialist insurer takes stake in Lloyd's coverholder as it expands in region

Specialist insurer Beazley says that it is expanding its Asia Pacific footprint by increasing its local underwriting presence and applying its global expertise to building solutions tailored to the specific needs of clients in the region.

Reinforcing this message, the insurer yesterday announced that it is making a strategic investment in Hong Kong-based Lloyd's coverholder, Pegasus Underwriting. The investment will see Beazley become a 30% shareholder in Pegasus. Beazley began working with Pegasus in January 2019 under an arrangement that combined the coverholder’s knowledge of the market and its strong broking relationships with Beazley's global expertise in financial lines, including professional indemnity, directors’ & officers’, cyber and medical malpractice liability.

In a statement on Tuesday, a day before announcing the Pegasus investment, Beazley said that having set up its hub in Singapore in 2006, the company has a well-established presence and reputation with brokers and clients in Asia Pacific, operating on the Lloyd’s Asia platform on both an insurance and reinsurance basis. It also writes reinsurance business through Lloyd’s Insurance Company (China).

The statement added, "The insurer is now making a strategic investment in the region to increase underwriting capability where it sees the opportunity to strengthen its existing offering. Beazley is also developing new products that will be launched in due course, in areas that it has achieved proven success with in other territories.

"Hiring for additional underwriters is already underway in specialist areas including cyber & technology, accident & health, M&A and specialty treaty. More new roles are expected to be created over the next 12 months."

Product offerings

In Asia Pacific, Beazley’s current product offering spans property, marine, political risks, political violence, contingency, cyber, financial lines, management liability and treaty reinsurance solutions.

An increased presence in Asia Pacific will also enable Beazley to build out sector-specific offerings in those areas where it has extensive claims and underwriting experience, such as financial services and healthcare. ‘White label’ partnerships with other carriers, which provide new distribution channels for Beazley’s specialist products, is another area that Beazley sees an opportunity to expand its current offering.

Mr Lucien Mounier, head of Asia Pacific at Beazley, said, “This is an exciting time for Beazley in Asia Pacific as we aim to increase our footprint and achieve sustainable, long-term growth. Our presence in this region has expanded steadily since we set up in Singapore 13 years ago. This is now the right time for us to make a strategic investment into further developing our propositions and on-the-ground presence.

“The commercial insurance markets within Asia Pacific are at different levels of maturity; however, there is a growing sophistication and awareness of their risks and requirements among clients. As intangible threats to businesses grow, such as cyber threats and risks to their reputations and brands, it is more important than ever to build long-term partnerships with our clients and brokers.

“Our investment in Asia Pacific demonstrates a firm commitment to this region and to ensuring clients have access through brokers to innovative solutions that evolve to meet their changing risk landscape.”

Mr Patrick Hartigan, Beazley’s global head of reinsurance and executive sponsor for Asia Pacific, said, “As we look to grow and diversify our business across product lines and territories, we are finding increased appetite among brokers and corporate clients for our specialist insurance and reinsurance offerings in Asia Pacific. Our investment in people and resources in the region will better position us to focus on the medium term strategic benefits.”

Source: Asia Insurance Review