Pardus adds two non-exec directors amid £1.6m capital raising

Pardus, a London-based independent managing general agent (MGA), has completed a £1.6 million capital raising, which attracted a variety of new private investors into the business.

Pardus was advised by West Hill Corporate Finance and the capital was raised through its growth capital arm, West Hill Capital. The new capital enables Pardus to continue to develop its MGA business in line with the strategy set out at launch in 2014.

Pardus launched five insurance products in its first 18 months and will now look to continue to develop existing business lines as well as identifying new opportunities that are aligned with the company’s strategy.

Alongside the capital-raising, Pardus has appointed two non-executive directors onto the board: Simon Byrne, who becomes non-executive chairman, and Brian King.

Byrne has more than 24 years’ experience in the insurance industry. He is partner and chief financial officer (CFO) at Red River Debt Purchase Fund. Previous roles include CFO at Tawa and finance director at CNA Insurance. Byrne began his career at PwC where he qualified as a chartered accountant.

King has more than 49 years’ experience in the insurance industry. He has held notable management positions in his career including managing director of Morgan Read & Colemen and managing director of Arthur J Gallagher & Co (UK). He currently holds directorships at Marine Aviation & General, TPD & Associates, ReSolution Underwriting Partnership, and The Underwriting Exchange.

Keith Thompson, chief executive, Pardus, said: “We are delighted to have secured new capital which provides the additional financial strength needed as we continue the journey to develop Pardus as a meaningful MGA in the London market. We remain focused on taking the business forward and achieving our goal of operating a multi-lined MGA which offers clear value to the broking community and insurance markets.

“We are also delighted to have secured the services of Simon and Brian which will bring further expertise and knowledge to the company as we continue to grow.”

Andrew Galloway, owner of West Hill, added: “Pardus represents an exciting proposition in a vibrant segment of the insurance market; businesses such as this play well to our knowledge and experience in this space where our funding is both wholly independent and from diverse sources on terms which reflect attractive EIS relief for investors.”