Ehinger preparing for LIO specialty carrier launch with PHLY connection

Former Guy Carpenter executive John Ehinger is working on the launch of a specialty carrier start-up LIO Insurance that is expected to have a strong connection with alumni from Philadelphia Insurance Company (PHLY) and investment from PE firm 1251 Capital Group, The Insurer can reveal.

According to sources, Ehinger – who was also previously at Willis Re for more than a decade – has teamed up with Boston-based 1251, which has an insurance division led by former PHLY executive Christopher Maguire.

Maguire is currently president of 1251 Insurance and prior to joining the investment firm was president, COO and CUO of PHLY, where he spent 25 years.

According to its website, 1251 Insurance helps specialty P&C insurance businesses accelerate growth and build scalable operations “while maintaining their independence and culture”.

Although the exact business plan of LIO Insurance is not known, market sources suggested it is building a tech-enabled specialty platform that would likely write on an admitted and non-admitted basis, including a strong emphasis on the burgeoning E&S market.

It is thought the proposed carrier is currently in the AM Best rating process and is likely to be seeking a start-up A- financial strength rating at the outset.

If it successfully launches it would be the latest start-up or scale-up targeting an E&S market that is seeing record business volumes and broad hardening.

Earlier this week Upland Capital Group emerged as another entrant to join the ranks, following scale-ups from players including Core Specialty and Skyward Specialty as well as expected moves from start-ups including Vantage.

Former PHLY execs

Ehinger was most recently head of global operations at Guy Carpenter and is a former Willis Re COO and Willis Re US president.

Details of the underwriting team at LIO Insurance are not known yet, but the start-up has made a number of operational and financial management appointments.

They include former Houston International Insurance Group chief risk officer Rhonda Kemp as CFO and former PHLY executive Seth Hall as chief operating officer.

Chief actuary and risk officer at the start-up is James Tygh, who was most recently a senior manager at EY and is a former Guy Carpenter managing director.

Meanwhile, former PHLY executive Nancy Emmi has been appointed chief claims officer, and another former PHLY executive, Lisa Prinz, takes the position of chief administrative officer at the start-up.

Former PHLY executive Dan Sweeney has been appointed chief sales and marketing officer.

There are also a series of technology focused appointments from outside the sector that point to the focus of the new business, including Jeffery Steffens as chief information officer, Nate McQueen as chief technology officer and chief data architect.

McQueen’s LinkedIn profile describes LIO Insurance as a specialty insurance company building a “customer-focused and technology-enabled business that will revolutionize the commercial property and casualty marketplace”.

It adds: “We are a niche-based carrier with a laser focused approach on providing a value-added product to specific industry verticals utilizing cutting-edge technology.”

PHLY redux?

Although details of the senior underwriting team are not yet clear, the number of former PHLY employees already signed up to the business points to a “PHLY redux”, said one market source.

PHLY was a publicly traded insurer from 1993 until it was sold to Japanese giant Tokio Marine in 2008 for $4.7bn.

It writes on an admitted and non-admitted basis and offers over 70 niche commercial P&C and professional liability insurance products.

Last year the carrier booked $3.71bn of gross written premium and reported a 101.7 percent combined ratio as it generated $245.7mn of net income.

Maguire – now of 1251 Insurance – is the son of PHLY founder James Maguire Snr.

PHLY has its origins in the 1960s with the formation of the Maguire Insurance Agency by Maguire Snr, but the company began operating as Philadelphia Insurance Company in 1987.

Christopher Maguire left PHLY in 2012 to pursue other interests. At that stage his brother Jamie Maguire held the positions of chairman and CEO at PHLY.

He stepped down as CEO shortly after the exit of his brother, but remained as chairman until last January, when Bob O’Leary, at the time president and CEO, assumed the position.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Jamie Maguire remains a special advisor to PHLY.

Ehinger, 1251 Capital Group and Christopher Maquire did not immediately respond to a request for comment.