RB Jones Global has launched a London-based managing general agent (MGA) focused on structured credit, backed by two Lloyd's syndicates. The initial per-risk line is US$30 million (£22.2 million), with authority to write selected risks on tenors of up to 15 years.
RB Jones Credit will target investment banks and asset managers as well as other financial institutions seeking insurance solutions for structured credit exposures. Lloyd's-backed underwriting capacity in this segment has been limited relative to demand. The London structured credit and political risk insurance (SCPR) market carries around US$3.5 billion (£2.6 billion) of capacity for any one risk, according to Gallagher Specialty's Q1 2025 market update, based on data from July 2024.
The launch follows a policy shift at Lloyd's of London. In August 2025, the corporation removed premium income limits that had previously capped the amount of credit and financial guarantee business syndicates could write.
Before the change, syndicate business plans were unlikely to receive approval where financial guarantee premium exceeded two per cent of agreed gross written premium. That constraint had effectively placed a ceiling on how much delegated authority businesses in the class could scale.
Ed Kelly leads the new MGA as managing director of RB Jones Global. He joined the business in 2025 after serving as North America head of specialty and global head of credit lines at AIG.
Kelly confirmed the MGA has signed its binder and begun quoting business. The operation will have a team of three at launch, with additional capacity providers expected to join the facility as it grows.
The MGA's appetite covers corporate credit risks for tenors of up to 10 years and project finance transactions for up to 12 years. Selected risks can be written for up to 15 years. Tim Brown, a senior structured credit and asset finance underwriter, has also joined the team.
Structured credit insurance for financial institutions is typically placed through specialist intermediaries rather than direct to market. It covers the non-payment risk of borrowers on a single name or portfolio basis.
Brokers with a credit and political risk practice have historically been the primary channel for business of this kind. RB Jones Credit gives those brokers a new underwriting option for bank and asset manager clients seeking to free regulatory capital or reduce credit concentrations.
The timing has some context. A joint survey by the Lloyd's Market Association (LMA), International Underwriting Association (IUA) and London & International Insurance Brokers' Association (LIIBA) found that London market trade credit insurance claims fell to 136 in 2025, down from 185 in 2024.
The aggregate value of those claims rose to US$438.5 million (£325 million), an increase of nearly US$38 million (£27.2 million) year on year. Fewer but larger losses point to growing concentration in complex, institutional transactions consistent with the business RB Jones Credit intends to write.
Kelly said: "RB Jones Credit brings fresh underwriting capacity from leading insurers to a traditionally under-served area of the market. Our service provides financial institution clients with a new option for managing risk distribution and regulatory capital, tailored to their specific needs and backed by AA-rated London market capacity.
"We have invested heavily in leading edge actuarial, analytics and reporting technology while setting up the business. Combined with the RB Jones Credit team's decades of experience and deep networks across the market, I am confident we are well positioned to support clients make the most of opportunities across the market cycle."
Paul Greensmith, chief executive of H.W. Kaufman International, described the credit MGA as the latest addition following the establishment of RB Jones Aviation Finance in May. Further MGA cells are expected to go live before the end of the year.
H.W. Kaufman Group, founded in 1969, launched RB Jones Global in August 2025 as a vehicle for its international specialist underwriting ambitions. The credit unit targets a long-standing gap between demand from financial institutions and the appetite of traditional insurers.
The expansion into structured credit reflects a wider shift in London market activity. In January 2026, Asta launched Verde Risk Management, a financial lines MGA focused on commercial crime, management liability, and financial institutions, also writing through Lloyd's. In June, Convex launched Kinetic MGA, which emphasised underwriting discipline as the Lloyd's market projected £67.4 billion in gross written premium for 2026.
Whether the removal of Lloyd's premium income limits proves sufficient to attract new capacity to the credit class at scale remains to be seen. Individual syndicates may still weigh concentration risk carefully as RB Jones Credit builds its book.
