Zurich Insurance Group has completed its £8.1 billion ($10.7 billion) acquisition of Lloyd’s insurer Beazley, effective Oct. 1.

Beazley shares were suspended from the London Stock Exchange and delisting occurred on Oct. 2. Under the terms of the deal (known in the UK as a scheme of arrangement), shareholders will receive 1,310 pence for each share held as of Sept. 30, 2026, with payment expected on Oct. 15, 2026.

As a result of the acquisition, Beazley announced a new board of directors: Patrick Manley, Earl Randall Clouser, Helen Pickford, and Claudia Cordioli, and Kristof Terryn, who has been named CEO of Beazley and Global Specialty, subject to regulatory approval.

Zurich further announced on Oct. 2 that Beazley CEO Adrian Cox will be leaving the company. Also stepping down from the board are the former Chairman Clive Bannister, along with Rajesh Agrawal, Roy Clark, Pierre-Olivier Desaulle, Nicola Hodson, Fiona Muldoon, Carolyn Johnson, (Anthony) John Reizenstein and Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger.

In its Oct. 2 announcement that the deal had been completed, Zurich confirmed the following changes to the Beazley management team:

• Helen Pickford, current chief financial officer at Zurich UK, will be appointed CFO of Beazley and Zurich Global Specialty. Barbara Plucnar Jensen, current Beazley group CFO, will continue to support the integration work as senior advisor until March 2027.
• Sally Henderson will be appointed chief people & sustainability officer, Beazley and Zurich Global Specialty. Henderson succeeds Liz Ashford, who has decided to retire. Liz has been instrumental in shaping the Beazley team, which is recognized in the market for its talent, expertise, and unique culture.
• Ed Bridge will be appointed general counsel, Beazley and Zurich Global Specialty. Previously, Bridge served as general counsel Zurich UK and Ireland.

“By integrating Beazley into our Global Specialty business, we will accelerate growth and we will bring new very relevant solutions to our existing clients. Beazley’s underwriters will have immediate access to our distribution model and will join our customer service teams,” according to Mario Greco, Zurich Insurance Group’s group chief executive officer, in a statement on Oct. 2.

“By 2029, the integration of Beazley will generate incremental revenue growth of over US$1 billion per annum, at least US$150 million of combined annual cost savings and meaningful capital synergies of at least US$1 billion of one-off capital extraction within the first two years, while benefiting from greater capital efficiency across a larger and more diversified specialty business,” Greco continued.

“London is one of the world’s leading insurance markets and has already been chosen as the natural base for our Global Specialty business,” he said.

“Zurich has been operating in the UK for more than a century, and we know the strength of the market, its talent and its role in shaping the industry’s future. Joining Lloyd’s of London for the first time is an important step, giving us access to a unique platform for capital, product and service innovation, specialist underwriting and global reach,” Greco continued.

London Platform

Beazley’s Lloyd’s of London platform (with six syndicates) will expand Zurich’s specialty market access and expertise, creating a combined business of approximately US$15 billion in gross written premiums, the company said in a presentation to investors in March.

“Beazley is a market leader for specialty risks in many of its chosen lines, which include cyber, digital, MAP, property and specialty,” the company said in a March 26 scheme document. (Beazley’s MAP risk business includes marine, aviation, political, accident, contingency and portfolio underwriting).

Beazley operates specialist insurance businesses in Europe, North America, Latin America, Bermuda and Asia and underwrote gross premiums worldwide of US$6.1 billion in 2025.

Zurich made a series of offers to acquire Beazley, including one in January of this year for £7.7 billion, which was rejected by Beazley. Ultimately, a sweetened £8.1 billion deal was accepted by Beazley’s board and shareholders.