Business briefs: Ironshore buys stake in Lexon

Ironshore Inc. has purchased a 9.9 per cent equity stake in Lexon Surety Group.

It also has an option to increase its ownership to 20 per cent of Lexon’s equity in the future, subject to receipt of requisite regulatory approvals. Ironshore’s initial investment is primarily in the form of convertible preferred units. The investment and option further the strategic alliance with Lexon announced in March 2013. 

Paul Giordano, chairman of Ironshore Political Risk, Special Risk and Surety, said in a press relase, “Ironshore’s investment today is an integral part of our relationship with Lexon, deepening the ties between our two companies and complementing the previously announced reinsurance and fronting relationship.   “Ironshore’s capital will add to Lexon’s financial strength and position Lexon well for future growth.”

Lexon writes over $100 million in direct written premiums annually and is the 12th largest writer of surety bonds in the United States. 

New crisis management insurance

IronPro has introduced an insurance programme to provide insureds with coverage for crisis events that pose potential public image risks.  The product, “Ironshore CrisisShield,” provides insureds with coverage for professional service expenses relating to the development of response strategies that will potentially mitigate adverse reputation consequences of certain specified risk events.  CrisisShield is available by endorsement to IronPro insureds and covers pre- and post-crisis management event costs incurred by these services. Lanny J. Davis, former White House Special counsel, and Mercedes Colwin, a managing partner for Gordon Rees, a national law firm, will deliver these professional services. 

“Increasingly, executives face unprecedented risk exposures resulting from unforeseen events that threaten both the entity’s reputation and ongoing business operations,” said Greg Flood, president of IronPro.  

“Ironshore’s alignment with Lanny Davis, the Davis Legal Crisis Group, and Mercedes Colwin of Gordon & Rees offers insureds a valuable resource to anticipate and manage crisis events with proven strategic guidance and the extra security of attorney-client privilege.” 

Daniel Wadley joins Endurance

Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. announced that Daniel Wadley has joined the company as executive vice president and head of their new Endurance Pro insurance unit. 

Mr. Wadley will be responsible for growing this specialty business unit which offers Errors & Omissions (E&O) coverage for professional firms as well as miscellaneous commercial classes. During his twenty year career in the insurance industry, Mr. Wadley has focused exclusively on professional liability business, working for both carriers and brokers.

Jack Kuhn, CEO of Global Insurance, said in a  press release “We welcome Dan’s expertise and leadership to our insurance team as we build our specialty capabilities and expand our E&O portfolio. I am confident that Dan and his team, ... will enhance our existing broker relationships, cultivate new ones and become recognized as a leading carrier in this market.”

Mr. Wadley joins Endurance from AXIS Insurance where he was EVP. 

It’s to the cloud for Foreshore

Foreshore’s public cloud services have achieved VMware vCloud Powered status.

Andy Jarrett, Foreshore’s COO said in a press release: “We are delighted to achieve VMware vCloud Powered status. Our company has a long record of innovation and expertise in the development of physical datacentre services, and it’s been a logical progression for us to move into the provision of cloud services suitable for enterprise business applications.”