Markel replaces president as it seeks to scale international operations

Specialist insurer  Markel Corporation has named a new president for  Markel International as part of its planned succession that will take effect by the start of 2022, pending regulatory approval.

Simon Wilson will become the next president of Markel International, succeeding William Stovin who has led the Markel International division since 2008.

Wilson currently serves as the managing executive of global strategy for Markel. He joined Markel in 2010 from the Lloyd’s Asia platform in Singapore to spearhead international business development. He was the primary architect of the national markets division, with operations in Europe and Canada, growing that business from $121 million to $402 million in annual gross written premium over the last decade.

He will report to Robert Cox, president and chief operating officer of insurance operations at Markel, and work from the London office. Stovin will remain with the company in an advisory capacity into next year.

Stovin joined Markel as part of the acquisition of Terra Nova Holdings in 2000. The deal was part of Markel’s strategy to expand its footprint beyond North America and in specialty insurance. Stovin was instrumental in driving Markel’s expansion as it grew to more than 60 insurance offices in 16 different countries.

Under Stovin’s leadership, gross written premiums profitably increased at a compound annual growth rate of roughly seven percent—more than doubling the size of the division.

Stovin said: “ Markel is a truly remarkable company, and having the opportunity to help expand it to new frontiers has been a great honour. I will always admire this organisation, and I know that Markel International will be in great hands under Simon’s leadership.”

Cox said: “Our global expansion was one of the most important decisions in Markel’s history, and William deserves significant credit for making it a success. His disciplined approach to profitably growing our wholesale business while also establishing and expanding our international retail operations has laid the foundation for tremendous growth in the future, and I’m confident that Simon will leverage this foundation to successfully lead our international operations in achieving our profitable growth goals.”

Wilson said: “ Markel seeks to be a leader in each of our pursuits, and our 90-year history has proven that the best way to do this is through deep expertise and exceptional service. Our commitment to understand our customers’ needs while exceeding their expectations will continue to be at the forefront of our minds as we further scale our international operations.”

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