Lloyd’s signs former GC ILS specialist Des Potter as special advisor

Lloyd’s has announced the appointment of Des Potter, a former Guy Carpenter executive and a specialist in insurance-linked securities (ILS), as a special advisor to assist the market in furthering its capital framework ambitions.

Potter was a managing director for ILS origination and structuring at GC Securities, the catastrophe bond and ILS focused investment banking uni of reinsurance Guy Carpenter.

Potter will be a special advisor to Lloyd’s CFO and COO Burkhard Keese, focusig on enhancing Lloyd’s capital framework and the instruments available to investors to support underwriting at Lloyd’s.

Burkhard Keese, CFO, Lloyd’s commented, “I am delighted that Des joins us to strengthen our position as a credible option for institutional investors. Des has a wealth of experience in the capital markets and brings extensive knowledge of transforming reinsurance risk to securities.

“This appointment emphasises Lloyd’s focus on making our market accessible to investors to support syndicates at Lloyd’s.”

Des Potter added, “I have always been a strong advocate of the underwriting capability in the Lloyd’s market and its leadership in so many classes of business.  This new role provides an exciting opportunity for me to contribute to enhancing access to the capital markets, to support this underwriting, and improving the experience for investors.”

Potter spent ten years at Guy Carpenter and was also a key member of the London Market Group’s ILS taskforce that worked on the development of the UK Risk Transformation legislation.

Before that, he held senior management positions at reinsurance broker unit Aon Benfield Securities Ltd and Benfield Advisory, while the early part of his career was spent in the corporate and investment banking divisions of Barclays Bank.

In his role as special advisor at Lloyd’s Potter will focus on making it easier for investors to access underwriting returns from insurance and reinsurance business transacted at Lloyd’s.

This will include through the risk transformation vehicle London Bridge Risk PCC, which was sponsored by Lloyd’s as part of its Future at Lloyd’s strategy.