QBE has appointed Jack Norman (pictured) as director of financial lines for its International Markets division, promoting an internal candidate into the role as the insurer works to shore up a portfolio it has flagged as underperforming.
Norman moves up from head of technical and business performance, a post he has held since 2024, and takes on the new role from September. He joined QBE from Aon in 2012, and since joining as an assistant underwriter has held a series of increasingly senior roles at the firm, specialising in financial lines across multiple product lines throughout that period.
The move comes days after QBE published half-year results to 30 June 2026, in which group chief executive Andrew Horton told analysts the business still needed to improve parts of its financial lines business in North America. The group reported a return on equity of 17.7% and gross written premium growth of 6% on a constant-currency basis, while maintaining its combined operating ratio at 92.8% – broadly in line with the prior year. Horton pointed to pressure in transaction liability, alongside accident and health, as contributors to weaker performance in the region.
Norman will remain based in London and report to Kevin Shallow, executive director of International Markets. He will also join QBE's International Markets leadership team and work with underwriting teams and product leaders to set strategic direction for the financial lines portfolio.
He succeeds Jamie Thompson, who was recently appointed to the newly created role of global director of data centres at QBE. Thompson had led the financial lines unit before the reshuffle.
Announcing the appointment, Shallow said: "I am delighted to announce Jack's appointment as director of financial lines. He brings extensive financial lines expertise and strong leadership capabilities across multiple product lines to this strategic role. Once again, we are lucky to have been able to call upon our strong internal talent pool to lead a key area for QBE."
The appointment also lands against a broader financial lines market in flux. A Lockton report on the financial institutions sector notes that most insurers believe pricing in higher excess layers has been pushed too low in recent years and is no longer sustainable, with outcomes expected to become increasingly account-specific as underwriters weigh risk quality for the year ahead. QBE has steadily built out its financial lines bench in the UK over recent years, including through the appointment of a regional underwriting manager for the line in 2022 and the hire of a European professional indemnity product manager. Norman's promotion adds another senior financial lines specialist to QBE's International Markets leadership structure as insurers reassess pricing, risk selection and portfolio performance across the sector.
