Berkley Re UK Names Ashley as President, Succeeding Himmer at Year-End; Aon Promotes Laing and Moore in Reinsurance Leadership Team

This edition of International People Moves details appointments at Berkley Re UK and Aon.

A summary of these new hires follows here.

Berkley Re UK Names Ashley as President, Succeeding Himmer at Year-End

W. R. Berkley Corp. announced the appointment of Wayne Ashley as president of Berkley Re UK Ltd., effective October 2025.

Clare Himmer will continue as Berkley Re UK’s chief executive officer with the expectation that Ashley will succeed her as CEO upon her retirement at the end of 2025.

Ashley has more than 30 years of experience in the international reinsurance market. Most recently, he was division president in London for Chubb Tempest Re International where he was responsible for the overall management and development of international property/casualty reinsurance business outside of North America and Bermuda.

In 2006, he joined Chubb Tempest Re Bermuda as assistant vice president, International. He was promoted to vice president in 2009 and senior vice president in 2012. Ashley relocated to London in 2017 and moved to the deputy role responsible for all international property lines of business in 2019.

Prior to Chubb, he was with Alea London, where he underwrote the International treaty portfolio. He began his career in London at Zurich Re in 1994 in the Reinsurance Treaty unit.

Himmer, who joined Berkley Re UK in 2021, has had a successful 33-year career in the P/C reinsurance industry. She will continue to lead the organization through the leadership transition.

“Clare’s leadership at Berkley Re UK has been instrumental in continuing to build a strong presence across the U.K. and European reinsurance markets. Her contributions have left a lasting positive impact, and we are deeply appreciative of all she has achieved on behalf of the company,” commented W. Robert Berkley Jr., president and chief executive officer of W. R. Berkley Corp.

“We’re pleased that Clare will remain an integral part of our organization through the transition—her insight, experience, and guidance continue to be a tremendous asset to the entire group,” Berkley added. “We are excited to welcome Wayne to the BRUK team. With a strong background and proven industry track record, Wayne is well-positioned to play a pivotal role in propelling the company forward.”

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Aon Promotes Laing and Moore in Reinsurance Leadership Team

Insurance broker Aon plc announced two promotions with its reinsurance executive leadership team to help insurer clients in the UK and APAC navigate volatility, optimize capital and drive profitable growth.

Andrew Laing has been named UK CEO for Reinsurance, subject to regulatory approval, and will retain his role as Aon’s global Facultative CEO, a position he has held since 2016 overseeing and driving a consistently high growth division within reinsurance. He will continue to be based in London.

Rupert Moore, who has successfully served as UK CEO for Reinsurance for the past three years, will take on a new role as CEO of Reinsurance across Asia Pacific and chairman of the region for Aon’s Strategy and Technology Group. He will relocate to Singapore later this year and serve as an adviser to Aon’s APAC CEO Jennifer Richards to help advance the firm’s Risk Capital strategy for Japan. Moore brings deep experience in the region, having previously served as CEO of Reinsurance in Japan for five years.

“This is an exciting time for our Reinsurance business as we announce these further high calibre leadership appointments,” commented Alfonso Valera, CEO of international for Reinsurance at Aon.

“Andrew and Rupert have combined decades of experience in the re/insurance marketplace and have a proven ability to achieve long-term sustainable growth while shaping better business decisions on behalf of clients. Following the recent leadership promotions within Reinsurance, these additional appointments will continue to accelerate the ambition and velocity of our industry-leading Reinsurance business to drive client value,” Valera added.

The appointments follow the firm’s recent announcements that Valera now serves as CEO of international for Reinsurance, responsible for UK, EMEA and APAC, Steve Hofmann serves as CEO of Americas for Reinsurance, responsible for North America and Latin America, George Attard serves as global head of strategy for Reinsurance, and Tomas Novotny serves as CEO of EMEA and chairman of international for Reinsurance.

Topics
Leadership
Reinsurance
Aon