Markel, the insurance operations within Markel Group Inc., has announced the appointment of James Shankland as Head of Ocean Cargo, U.S.
In his new role, Shankland will lead the growth of Markel’s U.S. cargo portfolio, overseeing underwriting strategy, portfolio management, and broker engagement.
Based in Markel’s New York office, he will work closely with actuarial, claims, operations, and distribution teams to ensure disciplined execution across the business.
Shankland brings deep marine cargo underwriting leadership experience across global insurers, with a strong track record in portfolio management, underwriting discipline, and broker engagement.
He joins Markel from AIG, where he most recently served as Underwriting Team Lead – Ocean Marine, managing a significant cargo portfolio, leading underwriting teams, and partnering closely with key brokers to drive profitable growth.
Prior to that, Shankland spent six years at Allianz, most recently serving as Underwriting Product Manager – Marine Cargo.
Michael Keely, Managing Director, Ocean Marine, commented, “James has a deep understanding of the increasingly complex risk, operational, and coverage challenges our brokers and customers face in today’s cargo market.
“By building on the success of our global cargo business and investing in building out a dedicated U.S. ocean cargo team, we are bringing that same level of expertise and reliability to the U.S. market.”
“I’m excited to build on Markel’s global capabilities and bring a disciplined, long-term approach to the U.S. market,” said Shankland. “There is strong demand for consistent underwriting, technical expertise and meaningful capacity, and I look forward to working closely with our brokers and clients to deliver solutions that support their evolving ocean cargo risks.”
