Hiscox Re’s Wilken: “We don’t want to be all things to all players”

Hiscox Re & ILS is positioning itself to capitalise on its strengths in property lines while diversifying its portfolio into specialty areas including marine, aviation and cyber, according to Matthew Wilken, chief underwriting officer.

“We want to continue being that specialised provider with deep technical knowledge, which gives us confidence to make sure that we make the right decisions and the right informed acceptance of risk for our shareholders,” Wilken told The Insurer TV during the Rendez-Vous in Monte Carlo.

Hiscox Re is leaning into its technical expertise in property lines while growing its footprint in specialty reinsurance, a strategy that’s shaped by external market dynamics and a changing risk landscape.

Wilken said the property reinsurance space, particularly property catastrophe (cat) lines, remains a profitable focus for the company. “The past five years saw growth in underlying property values due to inflation and increased exposure in coastal regions, but attachment points didn’t adjust fast enough to reflect this,” he noted.

A series of high-profile events including Hurricane Ian finally prompted the market to adjust. Now, with supply and demand more balanced, Hiscox Re sees an opportunity to expand its presence further.

However, Wilken was clear that Hiscox Re’s strategy isn’t just about expansion for the sake of growth. “We don’t want to be all things to all players,” he said. Instead, the firm is committed to building scale in areas where it can “provide something different” while diversifying its portfolio.

A key component of this approach is Hiscox’s ability to deploy not only its own capital but also third-party capital, from sidecar providers to dedicated funds and traditional quota shares. “That's a fundamental underpin of our strategy,” Wilken said.

The firm’s strategy also extends beyond property lines, with growing interest in specialty areas like cyber. Hiscox’s leadership in cyber reinsurance was highlighted by the recent CrowdStrike outage, which tested the resilience of the market.

“That was a good reminder of the interconnectivity that’s almost unique to cyber, in that an event can strike every territory, client and person at once,” Wilken said.

“While the losses weren’t as severe as it had initially appeared, it demonstrated the resilience needed in the cyber space.”

Looking ahead, Wilken stresses that managing volatility is a key priority for Hiscox Re.

“We do that in multiple ways,” Wilken said.

“First and foremost is client installation – know your business, know it well, have deep technical expertise and put energy and effort into building our research and development teams to ensure that we understand the risk as best we can.

“It’s a complex environment and we’re certainly not complacent. There’s always something to learn.”

Watch the interview with Hiscox Re’s Matthew Wilken to hear more about: