The Lloyd's Market Association (LMA) has announced the selection of new members to its Chief Underwriting Officers' Committee (CUOC), the senior underwriting committee representing the Lloyd's market.
Nicola Stacey (pictured), chief underwriting officer at Chaucer, has chaired the committee since its inception and continues in the role following this latest selection process. Stacey has more than three decades of experience in the insurance and reinsurance sector, having previously held senior leadership positions at Swiss Re and GE Insurance Solutions, and was named president of the Chartered Insurance Institute in late 2024.
Russell Bean of Talbot joins as deputy chair.
Continuing members include Martin Burke of MS Amlin, Andrew Dolphin of Hiscox, Ross Louden of Nephila, Chris Smelt of MAP, Alois Rouffiac of Canopius and Carolyn Shreeve of Allied World.
Newly appointed members are Ian Bridge of Dale, Gavin Hayes of Beazley, David Hopkins of Asta, John King of Brit, Henry Mumme-Young of SCOR, Henry Nelson of Liberty Specialty Markets, Melanie Raven of Ark, Toby Read of AXIS, Kevin Shallow of QBE, Steven Tebbutt of Starr and Matt Yeldham of AEGIS London - taking the committee's total membership to 19 alongside its chair.
The CUOC sits at the centre of the LMA's committee structure, bringing together chief underwriting officers and active underwriters from across the market. Reporting to the LMA board, the committee provides strategic leadership on underwriting issues and supports market-wide initiatives aimed at maintaining Lloyd's position as the leading global marketplace for specialty (re)insurance.
The CUOC was formed in May 2023 to give the Lloyd's market a dedicated forum for chief underwriting officers and active underwriters, filling a gap left by the existing Marine, Non-Marine and Aviation committees.
The LMA said members were chosen following a process led by its Nominations and Governance Committee, working alongside the CUOC chair and deputy chair. Selection criteria included diversity of underwriting expertise and firm representation across large, medium and small managing agents.
Matthew Bellamy, underwriting director at the LMA, said the committee's remit extends across both strategic and day-to-day underwriting concerns. "The CUOC plays a vital role in representing the interests of underwriters across the Lloyd's market, from driving conversations on emerging risks to promoting excellence in underwriting performance," Bellamy said. "We have brought together individuals with a broad range of experience, perspectives and technical expertise, which will be critical as the market continues to evolve."
Stacey thanked those involved in what she described as a competitive process. "We would like to thank the selected committee members, retiring members and all those who were nominated in what was a highly competitive process," she said. "The level of engagement demonstrates the importance that the wider market places on the work of the CUOC and its role in supporting the market."
The market delivered a pre-tax profit of £10.6 billion for 2025, up 10.1% year on year, with a combined ratio of 87.6% marking a third consecutive year of return on capital above 20%, results announced in March alongside a new five-year strategic framework under chief executive Patrick Tiernan.
That strength sits alongside a pricing cycle Lloyd's has itself flagged as a growing concern. In her Q2 2026 market message, Rachel Turk, Lloyd's chief of market performance, warned that rates were softening faster than expected, with casualty pricing viewed as inadequate and rapid cyber growth potentially outstripping the market's capacity to absorb risk. Property rates have also continued to soften at a pace the corporation considers problematic.
A CUOC drawing on chief underwriting officers from large composite carriers such as Beazley, Hiscox and QBE, alongside reinsurance-focused members like Nephila and SCOR, gives the LMA a broad base from which to represent underwriting views to Lloyd's leadership as the market navigates that shift from peak to softening conditions.
