Liberty Specialty Markets has introduced a new benefit for eligible political risk insurance policyholders -- a one-off advisory consultation with Blackthorn Risk Group, an independent security consultancy, at no additional charge for the defined scope of the session.
Clients purchasing qualifying political risk cover through Liberty's London team can opt in to a 60-minute virtual session with a senior Blackthorn adviser, covering up to two insured locations of their choice. The session is preceded by a short information request so the discussion can be tailored to the client's business, and followed by a written summary of key observations and suggested next steps.
The consultation must be completed within 90 days of policy issuance, has no impact on the client's cover, and is provided directly by Blackthorn under its own engagement terms as high-level advisory guidance rather than a substitute for detailed risk assessment or professional advice.
The timing tracks a broader shift in how geopolitical risk is shaping global investment. UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2026 found global foreign direct investment rose 6% to $1.6 trillion in 2025. However, that growth is heavily concentrated in strategic sectors such as AI infrastructure, semiconductors and critical minerals, where announced greenfield investment has grown more than fivefold since 2020.
Low and lower-middle-income economies captured only around 10% of that strategic-sector investment, and geopolitical tensions, industrial policy competition and rising economic security concerns are making the broader investment environment more fragmented and unpredictable, particularly for cross-border investors in lower-income markets, precisely the client base political risk insurance exists to serve.
William Limb, head of political risk solutions at Liberty Specialty Markets, said political instability and security-related risks continue to challenge businesses operating internationally, and that it is essential to support clients through the product offering itself. He said the partnership gives clients access to a market-leading specialist adviser to discuss security issues affecting their business, along with high-level, practical observations to help inform their approach to risk management, calling the investment a clear demonstration of Liberty's willingness to provide a differentiated offering.
Jerry Smith, head of advisory at Blackthorn Risk Group, brings a notably specialised background to the arrangement.
Smith spent more than 25 years across the British Army, UK Civil Service and the United Nations working on risk management, resilience and crisis response, and served as head of operations for the verification, disablement and initial removal of Syria's declared chemical weapons arsenal as a director at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize for that work. He was awarded an OBE in 2015 for services to international arms control and WMD counter-proliferation, and specialises more broadly in chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive threat management.
Smith said businesses operating in complex environments often know security issues require attention but may lack a clear starting point, and that Blackthorn's advisers spend their careers focused on malicious risks, giving Liberty's clients direct access to that experience through practical, actionable and prioritised insight into their exposures.
Blackthorn itself rebranded from CHC Global in 2025, describing its work as spanning strategic risk management, operational resilience, security governance and crisis management for the insurance sector, corporations, NGOs and governments, alongside a broking division covering terrorism and political violence, active assailant, kidnap for ransom and related classes.
Pairing political risk cover with a named security consultancy's advisory access reflects a broader trend of insurers building non-claims value into specialty lines where the underlying risk is hard for clients to assess on their own.
Political risk and political violence insurance specifically has seen sustained growth in recent years as businesses expand into markets with less predictable regulatory and security environments, a trend Liberty's own political risk team has previously linked to rising foreign direct investment tied to the energy transition and post-pandemic recovery.
What distinguishes this benefit from a typical insurer marketing add-on is the specificity of the adviser behind it. A named security consultancy staffed by someone with genuine chemical weapons disarmament and counter-proliferation credentials is a different proposition from a generic risk management helpline.
For corporate clients weighing where to expand or invest amid the kind of fragmented, security-driven investment environment UNCTAD describes, direct access to that level of specialist judgement, even in a bounded, 60-minute format, is a genuine point of differentiation rather than a token add-on.
Whether clients actually use the benefit, and whether Liberty tracks and reports on uptake, will be the real test of whether this becomes a meaningful part of the political risk proposition or a rarely-claimed perk.
