RKH Specialty taps new Asia Pacific CEO from Allianz in expansion move

RKH Specialty, part of the Hyperion Insurance Group, has hired Allianz's Paul O’Neill to take up the position of CEO of its Asia Pacific region, based in Singapore.

The appointment will enable incumbent APAC CEO Stuart Beatty to move to a new role as head of RKH Reinsurance Brokers APAC with a remit to expand the company’s recently established reinsurance business in the region.

O’Neill was previously the chief underwriting officer of specialty at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) and a member of the board of management. He previously worked as regional manager for energy at AGCS from 2003 to 2007.

O’Neill began his career as a chemical engineer before moving into the insurance sector where he performed risk-engineering reviews for the London insurance market. While working at Lloyd’s, he transitioned into underwriting and since then, has worked across a number of senior leadership roles, culminating in the recent board role at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty.

O’Neill said: “Looking at insurance products and services from a client’s perspective has been an important part of my previous roles. This is an exciting opportunity to work alongside the team at RKH Specialty. I am very much looking forward to being part of a business that balances its scale in global markets with the ability to be flexible and nimble in order to deliver results for clients.”

Paul Redgate, deputy chairman, RKH Specialty, commented: “Paul will join us at a hugely exciting time as RKH and Howden come together to blend the full breadth and strength of our product expertise with our growing regional ambitions in Asia and beyond. We are focussed on making our distribution channels more accessible, more efficient and more effective for our clients and we will continue to invest in and strengthen resources to deliver this.”