Watson will join the broker in a newly created role

Anita watson

Former Thistle chief operating officer Anita Watson has left the JLT owned MGA and joined Bluefin as operational performance director.

The role, which has been newly created for Watson, will see her focus on trading processes and client propositions.

Watson spent just under two years as Thistle chief operating officer and was previously managing director and divisional director at Oval. She has also held underwriting roles at Zurich.

Watson said: “Bluefin has a great standing in the marketplace. It’s great to be joining a company that is clear on what it wants to achieve and is completely focused on its clients.”

Last year, Bluefin hired Thistle’s chief underwriting officer Paul Drake, as it looked to establish its own MGA.

The 2025 Insurance Times Awards took place on the evening of Wednesday 3rd December in the iconic Great Room of London’s Grosvenor House.

Hosted by comedian and actor Tom Allen, 34 Gold, 23 Silver and 22 Bronze awards were handed out across an amazing 34 categories recognising brilliance and innovation right across the breadth of UK general insurance.
Many congratulations to all the worthy winners and as always, huge thanks to our sponsors for their support and our judges for their expertise.