What started as a need to fill a capacity void in the cyber liability insurance market in 2013 has become a rapidly growing segment for RT Specialty. So much so, that a team was formed to handle the business and identify other areas in the market where coverage is needed.

Jonathan Reiner and Patrick Richmond, executive vice presidents at RT Specialty, a unit of Chicago-based Ryan Specialty Holdings Inc., head this team within the RT Professional and Executive division.

The team combined their cyber experience with the knowledge of former cyber underwriters and data analysts to form an RT-exclusive facility backed by five insurers.

“We worked together with a few key trading partners at the facility to replenish some of the supply of the cyber catastrophes market,” he said. “That had been due to hardening conditions that drove the supply and the market down quite a bit.”

They have since seen rapid growth, with a premium growth rate of 96.3% in 2021, following a 137% rate in 2020. 

This expansion has necessitated a larger staff. “RT Specialty is an amazing platform,” Mr. Reiner said. “It has allowed us the freedom and the resources to go from a staff of two to more than 80.”

The team’s success can be attributed to these personnel, he said. “They have come in with passion, desire and value,” he said.

Of the new employees, about half were underwriters before entering broking. “We also have success hiring people from outside the industry, most often right out of college,” he said.

There is one trait they all have in common, however, “and that is heart,” he said. The team shows this by giving back to the community, supporting Laugh Your Face Off, a Chicago-based comedy fundraiser devoted to finding a cure for trigeminal neuralgia and neuropathic face pain.

“It’s very challenging to live with and it wasn’t getting the proper funding,” Mr. Reiner said. “We wanted to help raise awareness and funds for research.” Over the past several years they have raised more than $300,000.

Looking ahead, the team’s strategy is to find gaps in the market. “We spend time with and talk to our clients,” Mr. Reiner said. “When they tell us they are having pain somewhere, our goal is to figure out a way to help and take pressure off them so they can be better for their clients.” 

FINALISTS

• Pathpoint Inc. — The wholesaler  Pathpoint developed an online excess and surplus quoting, binding and policy issuance process for retailers.

• PL Risk Advisors Inc. — The Axis Management Group Holdings Inc. division developed specialty expertise for hard-to-place risks, including cyber, professional liability, cannabis and transactional liability.

• SolePro Inc. — SolePro developed an insurtech platform for the workers compensation industry that provides retailers with multiple quotes and comparisons.

• Synapse Partners LLC — Synapse designed a proprietary data management platform that provides insights into the specialty market and benchmarking analysis.