AIG has appointed Gavin Spencer (pictured) as head of specialty, North America, effective immediately. He takes on the expanded role alongside his existing position as Head of Marine, North America, consolidating leadership of the insurer's specialty and marine operations across the region under a single senior executive.
Spencer joined AIG in 2024. He brings more than 25 years of experience across the marine, cargo and logistics insurance sectors, spanning underwriting, claims, broking and surveying across Lloyd's of London, the Americas, Asia and EMEA. Before joining AIG, he held leadership positions at Parsyl, Marsh and W E Cox Claims Group.
Gordon Browne, Global Head of Specialty at AIG, said: "North America is a key region within our Global Specialty portfolio, and Gavin's experience, leadership and market knowledge will be valuable as we continue to strengthen our Specialty business and deliver for clients and brokers across the region."
The appointment reflects the growing strategic weight of specialty lines within AIG's overall business. In 2025, AIG completed the acquisition of a 35% equity stake in Convex, a privately held global specialty insurer, for approximately $2.1 billion, alongside a 9.9% ownership stake in Onex, a global asset manager, for approximately $646 million. Alongside the equity stakes, AIG began participating in a whole-account quota share of Convex's business from January 1, 2026, with plans to increase cessions in 2027 and 2028, giving it access to diversified specialty risk and fee income while deploying capital through both equity and reinsurance.
AIG also acquired the renewal rights of Everest Group's global retail commercial insurance portfolios for $301 million, and launched a strategic collaboration with Amwins and Blackstone to form Lloyd's Syndicate 2479, providing capacity for portfolio solutions. Taken together, these moves signal a deliberate acceleration of AIG's specialty capabilities at a moment when the North American specialty market is itself expanding rapidly.
The North American specialty insurance market was valued at approximately $43.99 billion in 2025, representing 39% of the global specialty market, and is expected to reach $49.88 billion in 2026. Marine, aviation and transport holds the largest share of specialty premiums at 45% of the global total, with North America retaining market leadership driven by rate adequacy in cyber, political-violence and catastrophe layers, and US excess-and-surplus lines growing to 34% of commercial business.
Spencer's dual mandate across marine and specialty is particularly well-timed given the complexity currently facing both disciplines in North America. Tariffs on US imports have raised declared cargo values by 20 to 30%, inflating premium bases, while geopolitical route diversification is lengthening transit times and increasing exposure windows, spurring demand for voyage extensions and contingent business interruption endorsements. Entering 2026, demand patterns across North American trade routes remain fundamentally altered, with businesses continuing to reassess cargo economics in response to tariff pressures and secondary ports experiencing reduced vessel calls as carriers consolidate operations at major hubs.
Marine and cargo insurers face increased claims tied to delays, rerouting and spoilage risks, while trade disruption also has the capacity to affect inland marine policies covering warehousing and logistics. For a region as trade-dependent as North America, where both the US and Canada rely heavily on cross-border and transoceanic commerce, these dynamics are driving demand for the kind of specialist underwriting expertise that Spencer's background spans.
AIG's North America Commercial Insurance division also underwent a leadership restructure effective January 1, 2026, with Allison Cooper and Barbara Luck appointed co-presidents of Retail and Lou Levinson as president of Wholesale, all reporting to incoming AIG president John Neal. Spencer's appointment as Head of Specialty sits within that broader reorganization — placing specialty at the centre of a refreshed commercial leadership structure as AIG moves into the next phase of its North American strategy.
