CFO from Gallagher ranks joins Pen Underwriting to supercharge growth

London-based managing general agent (MGA) Pen Underwriting, a subsidiary of re/insurance broker  Gallagher, has picked a new chief financial officer (CEO) following a leadership shuffle triggered by the  departure of its specialty managing director.

Catriona Thomson (pictured) has been appointed as CFO and will join Pen’s executive team with effect from July 1.

Thomson will take over from current CFO Sarah Breslin, while Breslin will become the managing director of Pen’s Specialty division, succeeding Steve Thornett who has left the company.

Thomson, a chartered accountant, has notable experience in regulated financial services, having been head of IBA Operations for the Gallagher group in the UK since 2014, where she currently manages a team of over 200 employees in Glasgow.

Prior to joining Gallagher, Thomson spent nine years at Morgan Stanley as a senior manager predominantly in the derivatives and global structured products arena, and was at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) within the public sector advisory unit before that.

Tom Downey, CEO of Pen Underwriting, said: “We couldn’t be happier to welcome Catriona as our new CFO. Not only does she have the energy, drive, technical capabilities and leadership skills to support our ambitions for expansion but her personality and fit for Pen shine through. Having worked across all four of Gallagher’s UK trading divisions over the last nine years – and having been instrumental in integrating many acquired businesses over that period – Catriona has a built-in understanding of our business, products and clients as well as being ideally placed to help shape Pen’s story of strategic sustainable growth.

“It is also great to once again be able to recruit from our internal talent pool for a pivotal role in Pen as we continue on our journey to become a £1 billion GWP underwriting and distribution company.”

Thomson added: “I’m absolutely delighted to be joining Pen at such an exciting juncture, with the business in full growth mode as it invests in new underwriting specialisms and a wider portfolio of client solutions. Having got to know the business well, my experience of Pen has always been one of collaboration and customer-centricity, so I am really looking forward to joining the team and meeting all my new colleagues in the coming months.”

Did you get value from this story?  Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.