Challenging Times and Change Management at Aspen

Aspen announced today that David Cohen, President and Chief Underwriting Officer of Aspen Insurance, will lead the day-to-day management of the Insurance business, reporting to Group Chief Executive Officer, Chris O’Kane. Cohen is replacing Stephen Postlewhite, who is “leaving the business with immediate effect” after being named CEO back in May 2016.

“David joined Aspen in November 2015. Since his arrival, he has upgraded the underwriting talent in our Insurance segment, is refocusing our underwriting book and is positioning Aspen Insurance for success in the next stage of its development. David is a strong and well-respected leader and I am confident that as we move forward, he will drive improvements across our Insurance business” – Chris O’Kane.

The news follows a terribly disappointing Q4 2017, in which Aspen is expected to record an underwriting loss of approximately $245 million, attributed to both Aspen’s insurance and reinsurance segments. “We are deeply disappointed with our financial performance in 2017. We have taken a number of actions to improve our underwriting performance and expect to see the impact of these reflected in our 2018 underwriting year results and beyond. We believe our capital position is appropriate to support our ongoing business and underpins our financial strength ratings” – Chris O’Kane.

In two words: self immolate.