Palms Insurance has named Ho-Tay Ma as executive vice-president of complex treaty reinsurance. Ma, a veteran of nearly two decades in the industry, will lead its complex treaty strategy and portfolio development.
Ma will manage risks across all property and casualty lines in the new role. He will also focus on developing new products for markets the company sees as fast-growing.
Ma announced the move on LinkedIn: “In my new role, I am responsible for managing risks across all Property & Casualty lines and innovating new products for fast-growing markets.” He added that he looked forward to reconnecting with colleagues and forging new partnerships.
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The appointment builds on Palms Insurance’s existing presence in the US excess and surplus lines market. The company has served as a capacity provider in the E&S casualty space. It was one of three carrier partners backing Aurenity’s excess casualty program, alongside Everspan and Fortegra, with combined underwriting capacity reaching $17 million across casualty lines.
Ma joins from SCOR Reinsurance Company in New York, where he worked as a treaty reinsurance underwriter. He brings more than 19 years of underwriting experience to the role, with a focus on cyber, management liability, professional liability, and casualty.
Before SCOR, Ma held underwriting and product development roles at PartnerRe, AEGIS Insurance Services, and The Hartford. His career spans both established reinsurers and specialty insurers across complex P&C placements. This background covers the full range of risks Ma will now oversee at Palms.
Ma is a graduate of Wesleyan University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in economics and government.
Ma steps into the role as the US surplus lines market continues to expand. Surplus lines premium volume across stamping office states totaled $90.3 billion through year-end 2025. This figure represents a 7.8% increase from the $83.8 billion reported in 2024.
Item counts rose 14.1% over the same period, pointing to growing demand for complex, non-standard placements.
Palms Insurance operates as a specialty and surplus lines group through Palms Specialty Insurance Company, Palms Insurance Company Ltd, and Sabal Specialty Insurance Company, under Palms Portfolio Holdings. As surplus lines carriers, the Palms companies place coverage through licensed surplus lines brokers rather than directly with insureds.
