OAK Global is targeting the increasingly interconnected risks of climate and technology with the launch of OAK Horizon, a new underwriting unit designed to channel capital into emerging exposures, as CUO Tom Dickson points to a narrowing window to address rising volatility across sectors, including food security, energy and supply chains.
Dickson, whose role has expanded to CUO of OAK Horizon alongside his existing position as President of Innovation Strategies, said the unit is intended to lay the commercial foundations needed to address these evolving risks.
According to the firm, the new business, backed by capacity from its existing Lloyd’s syndicates, will target a broad range of exposures, including catastrophe protection for evolving natural perils, parametric covers, energy and power-related financing and performance risks, technology-linked asset protection, and public sector partnerships.
“Internally, we’ve been developing the strategy, and now with the external launch of OAK Horizon, the underwriting approach really comes to life,” Dickson told Reinsurance News in an interview following the announcement.
He continued, “The timing is critical: investment is accelerating in these areas, and the impact of these risks makes the world feel, in some ways, riskier. Being in the risk solutions business right now is exciting, but it also requires care”
“One key challenge is how to underwrite risks that don’t have a long historical track record. That’s where technology comes in, bringing in new datasets from outside the traditional insurance and reinsurance world and integrating them with underwriting expertise and analytics. The goal is to improve how we assess risk and provide solutions.
“We hope to establish ourselves as a leader in this space, working closely with partners. We already have strong connectivity in the marketplace, and having invested in the right building blocks from the outset, we’re excited about the significant commercial opportunities ahead.”
Dickson said OAK Horizon is designed to offer a compelling proposition to clients and partners—including brokers, insurers and MGAs—by combining specialist underwriting expertise to structure solutions for complex risks and unlock placement opportunities that may not otherwise be accessible.
He added, “When I joined OAK Global in June of last year, my background was in new product development and innovation, mostly in the energy infrastructure space. Bringing that expertise together here has been exciting.
“Less than 18 months into our operations, we’re now able to launch another strategic business unit with conviction, both around managing complexity and driving innovation.
“By innovation, I mean not only product innovation, developing creative coverage structures, but also finding new ways to deploy capital to these risks.
“For us, that includes parametric portfolios in areas like climate, weather, energy, and agriculture. It’s about the intersection of climate and technology and building an ecosystem that addresses those challenges.
“OAK Horizon is designed to channel capital into these high-demand areas, with the goal of building resilience across the real economy, both for consumers and businesses. We’ll be working with capital partners to support this strategy as it continues to grow.”
Looking ahead, Dickson said the near-term focus will be on execution and building a diversified portfolio that is both stable and profitable, while reflecting the unit’s strategic objectives.
“We’ll certainly be active in the market, spreading the word about our approach and seeking partnerships and connectivity. Right now, it’s about putting our plans into action, living up to the process we’ve been developing since last year and establishing the first-year underwriting portfolio,” he added.
Dickson concluded, “That portfolio will be diversified, combining natural peril and climate change coverage with other areas in the financing space and next-generation engineered assets, like new energy infrastructure and supply chain risks. Many of these risks are non-correlating, which helps create a robust portfolio.
“Our priority in this first year is to execute carefully, ensuring that we deliver on the strategy we’ve outlined and lay a strong foundation for growth.”
In the initial release earlier today, Cathal Carr, Founder, CEO and Group CUO of OAK Global, said, “The intersection between climate and technology will drive significant opportunity across the risk landscape over the coming decades.
“From a climate resilience perspective, technological and data advancements enable enhanced pricing and structuring of evolving weather risk transfer, supporting re/insurance penetration to reduce the protection gap through traditional and parametric solutions.
“Technological innovation can drive increased efficiency in addressing the energy and power needs of an evolving global economy, with the opportunity to enhance energy security and mitigate reliance on higher-cost and finite legacy systems.
“In addition to advancing risk solutions, technological innovation will also introduce challenges as we consider the needs of next-generation engineered assets, such as data centres, and the risk uncertainty associated with nascent technologies such as nuclear fusion.”
“OAK Horizon takes a systems-based approach to this ecosystem of growing demand to partner with our clients, create value for our investors and support economic resilience.”
