Dale Partners receives approval to launch new managing agency in Lloyd’s

Dale Partners Limited (DPL) has received approval from Lloyd’s, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) to establish its managing agency – Dale Managing Agency Limited.

Chief executive Duncan Dale said the news is a “major milestone” in the development of the company, as establishing the agency has been a “long-term goal” for DPL for it to gain “independence and accountability for the strategy, execution and governance of the business”.

He continued: “Naturally, I would like to thank our amazing team. Their hard work, dedication and resilience have brought us to this point.

“This is a tremendous endorsement of our team and to supplement the 50 managing agents currently managing live syndicates in the Lloyd’s market is an honour and privilege.

“We are also extremely grateful for the hard work and commitment to making this happen by the teams in Lloyd’s, the PRA and FCA and look forward to working with them into the future.”

Dale further thanked the team at Davies company Asta for their “tremendous support” over the past nine years, which he said had “paved the way” for DPL to take its “next step in the evolution” of its business in the marketplace.

New appointees

As part of the announcement, DPL revealed that it has hired four independent non-executive directors (NEDs) to join its agency’s board. Dale said their expertise would be “invaluable” in the agency launch.

John Hastings-Bass will serve as chair. Bass is currently chair of Just Group and BMS Group. His prior appointments include director of Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT) Group, chair of international development for AJ Gallagher and chair of Novae Group.

Heather McKinlay will serve as chair of the audit committee. McKinlay is currently a NED for Antares Syndicate Management and a trustee of humanitarian non-governmental organisation RedR UK. Prior to this, she held a variety of financial roles at firms including Aviva, Swiss Re, Catlin and Zurich.

Alan Grant will serve as chair of the risk committee. Grant currently serves as NED for Oneglobal Insurance Brokers. His prior appointments include chair of the risk committee at Thomas Miller Holdings and of the risk framework and compliance committee at Argenta Syndicate Management.

John Hume will serve as independent NED. Hume is the former chair of XL Re Europe and has over 35 years’ experience in financial services companies, including serving as Axa XL’s global head of finance operations.

Dale, active underwriter Dominic Peters and finance director Carol McCarthy will also join the board.