Ascot founder takes helm of Helios as CEO to plot ‘profitable’ growth strategy

Lloyd’s investment vehicle  Helios has appointed market veteran and  Ascot founder as CEO to plot a new “profitable” growth strategy as it looks to take advantage of a “plethora of opportunities” in the current Lloyd's market through targeted acquisitions and organic growth.

Martin Reith (pictured) takes helm of Helios as an executive director of the company and as chief executive officer (CEO) with immediate effect, with Nigel Hanbury remaining on the board as executive deputy chairman, providing the board with continued leadership and extensive knowledge of Lloyd’s.

Reith has nearly 40 years of experience across underwriting, management and leadership. He was the founder and CEO of Ascot Underwriting, which he established in 2001 with the support and backing of AIG. Under his leadership, Ascot became one of the largest and top-performing businesses in Lloyd’s with a network of overseas offices.

Reith, who has been heavily involved in advising Helios board on the curation of its capacity portfolio for the last 12 months, sees exciting opportunities for further shareholder value creation at the company, “specifically by repositioning the earnings stream into a combination of underwriting returns, fees and commissions to support further profitable growth”.

“Helios is an extraordinary business that has grown significantly in recent years and is seen as the benchmark for private capital in the Lloyd's market,” Reith said. “I look forward to setting out my strategy in detail in due course.”

Prior to joining Helios as a non-executive director in 2021, Reith held board positions at Neon Underwriting, as CEO from 2015 to 2019 and then assumed a non-executive role until 2020. In 2009, he stepped down as CEO and served as a non-executive on Ascot's board from 2009 to 2011. Prior to Ascot, he served as CEO of XL Capital's Insurance Operations in London. He has also been a member of the board of directors at AmWINS Group and has previously served as a director to Securis Investment Partners, an ILS fund based in London, on their various boards. He is currently non-executive chair at Artificial Labs and a board member of Prospero Re, the reinsurance vehicle of Bermuda headquartered ILS fund and investment manager Resolute Global Partners Ltd, a 17.3% shareholder of the company.

Michael Cunningham, non-executive chairman of Helios Underwriting, said: "We are delighted by Martin's elevation to CEO. His proven experience in driving growth strategies and creating significant shareholder value means that he is perfectly positioned to lead Helios on to its next stage of evolution.

“We are also very pleased that we will continue to benefit from Nigel's experience and expertise. In his decade as Chief Executive he has led Helios from strength to strength through strategically targeted acquisition activity and organic growth.

“With a plethora of opportunities open to us to take advantage of the current Lloyd's market conditions to drive further growth, we look to the future with confidence.”

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