StarStone Group gets new chair, president

CEO for international operations also announced

StarStone Group gets new chair, president

Insurance News

By Terry Gangcuangco

StarStone Group has made further changes up top, barely six months since group chief executive John Hendrickson was tapped to take the helm at the global specialty insurer.  

First of all, president Chris Rash will become deputy group CEO as well as chief executive of StarStone International. The RSA veteran and former MS Amlin group chief financial officer came onboard StarStone in August 2018 as executive chairman before taking on the newly created position of president last October.

Succeeding Rash as president is Dick Sanford, who brings three and a half decades of industry experience and will oversee the group’s global underwriting and reinsurance strategy. Previously the chairman & president of PartnerRe US, Sandford started his career in 1984 as an AIG casualty underwriter.

Meanwhile Ed Noonan, who was chair & CEO of Validus Group from 2005 to 2018, has been named as StarStone chairman. Noonan joined Swiss Re in 1979 and moved to American Re in 1983.

“This is a pivotal moment for StarStone,” commented Hendrickson. “As we reposition StarStone to deliver profitable growth, Ed and Dick bring a wealth of knowledge.

“Their respective contribution, together with Chris’s financial and operational expertise, will prove invaluable as we continue to provide highly professional, bespoke specialty solutions to our clients, locally and globally.”

Owned by Enstar Group Limited – the Trident V funds managed by Stone Point Capital LLC and Dowling Capital Partners I, L.P. – StarStone has operations in London, Continental Europe, and the US. It underwrites business across the property, specialty, and casualty risk classes.

“The experience that Ed and Dick bring to StarStone is considerable,” said Enstar and Stone Point in a joint statement. “Their appointments demonstrate our collective investment and commitment in realising StarStone’s ambitions, and we are very pleased to welcome them to the group.”

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