16 March 2015 Insurance

Liberty Specialty launches Dubai operations

Liberty Specialty Markets (LSM), part of Liberty Mutual, has commenced operations from the new Lloyd’s premises in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

LSM plans to start writing on Lloyd’s paper in Dubai from April 2015, in a move which gives LSM its second office in the DIFC.

LSM has been operating a branch of its London company there since 2006, and with this latest move is expected to offer Lloyd’s syndicate capacity from the DIFC for the first time.

The new Lloyd’s office will be based in the DIFC and headed by Elie Bouchaaya, Middle East and North Africa senior vice president and regional manager.

Final approval is awaited from the local regulator, the Dubai Financial Services Authority, for LSM to operate from both its existing premises and the new Lloyd’s premises, writing business on behalf of both its company and its Lloyd’s syndicate.

John McCammon, LSM’s head of international network offices, said: “Being able to write risks locally on Lloyd’s paper is one of the benefits of the creation of LSM. Our companies market office has serviced the region well for some years, but this initiative should allow us to take full advantage of the new Lloyd’s platform, weighing up which lines of business are best written on which type of paper and allow us to offer our syndicate products from within the region for the first time.

“Over time, we’ll expand the range of business lines available and strengthen the team. Operating from the Lloyd’s premises will provide Liberty with a more flexible underwriting platform in Dubai from which to grow, as well as more strategic options for our future.

“London is a mature market, so we see a significant percentage of our growth in the next few years coming from Dubai - which we consider to be a very attractive market. We do believe that new business opportunities will be created for us by the availability of Lloyd’s paper in the Gulf region.”

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