Global specialty insurer Ryan Specialty Holdings appointed Katie Davies as CEO and Jeff Smith as President and Chief Underwriting Officer (CUO) of Power Energy Risk’s (PERse) North American operations, effective immediately.
Davies takes over from Mike Bernay, who will serve as a senior advisor to the business till he retires.
Bernay founded PERse, Ryan Specialty’s renewable energy managing general underwriter, in 2011.
Davies has extensive experience in underwriting and establishing facilities and teams that specialize in highly-engineered and cat-exposed risks, the specialty insurer said.
Davies will remain the CEO of JEM Underwriting Managers (cat property) and Technical Risk Underwriters (builder’s risk).
Smith, one of the founders of PERse, has been appointed as the President of PERse while retaining his position as the Chief Underwriting Officer. Smith played a key role in launching and expanding PERse, leading the company in underwriting, engineering, and claims management.
“In this leadership transition, I am excited to see Katie share her expertise and existing platform resources in capital management, loss control, and engineering to PERse. Moreover, this is a great recognition of Jeff’s exceptional contribution to building and leading PERse,” Miles Wuller, CEO & President of Ryan Specialty Underwriting Managers, said.
