MGA Descartes Underwriting ramps up US expansion with senior hire

Paris-based managing general agency (MGA) Descartes Underwriting has appointed Daniel Vetter as head of North America as the firm ramps up its expansion in the US.

Vetter will be based in New York and will focus on setting up the MGA’s US operations.

His most recent role was at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions where he was head of E&S North America. He was at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions for twelve years and before that had held director roles at Swiss Re.

Prior to joining Swiss Re in 2000, Vetter was vice president at Gerling America Insurance Company.

The MGA described Vetter’s appointment as “a huge milestone in our North American expansion”.

Founded in 2018, Descartes Underwriting raised $18.5 million from Serena, Cathay Innovation and BlackFin Capital Partners in September 2020 in a series A funding round to support its global expansion, as well to launch offices in New York and Singapore. The innovative tech-led MGA has ambitions to become the market leader for corporate parametric insurance using advanced technology and data analytics to disrupt traditional insurance models.

The business has hired a raft of fresh talent in 2020 as it prepares to expand, including Fatma Moalla, who will join the team as a data scientist with knowledge of machine learning and computer vision.