Portfolio underwriting in 2026 (397)

In this episode, Robin Merttens moderates a panel with Tessa Wardle of QBE, Emily Stanford of Gallagher and Jonathan Spry of Envelop Risk, recorded live at the InsTech London event Some lead, others follow: Smart underwriting and broking strategies for 2026. 

As algorithmic underwriting and portfolio solutions reshape the London Market, insurers, brokers and reinsurers are rethinking how risk is placed, followed and managed at scale. Facilities are multiplying, digital trading models are emerging and data is becoming the foundation of increasingly automated underwriting decisions. 

Drawing on perspectives from underwriting, broking and reinsurance, the panel explores what portfolio underwriting really looks like in practice today. They discuss how facilities are evolving, why broker strategies are changing and what it takes to run sustainable portfolio capacity in a market that is becoming more digital and more data-driven.  

At the centre of the discussion is a growing tension between ambition and infrastructure. The market wants faster placement, smarter capital allocation and more algorithmic decision-making, yet many firms are still wrestling with fragmented data, legacy systems and inconsistent standards. 

In this conversation, Tessa, Emily and Jonathan share: 

• Why portfolio solutions have become one of the fastest-growing models in the London Market 
• How brokers are evolving their placement strategies as facilities and pre-placed capacity expand 
• Why selecting the right portfolio leader is critical for long-term facility performance 
• How improving data quality is becoming a prerequisite for digital trading and algorithmic underwriting 
• Why incentives across brokers, carriers and reinsurers matter when it comes to better data 
• How AI is reshaping risk, creating new liability exposures and changing how insurers analyse emerging threats 
• Why capital providers are increasingly demanding greater transparency and portfolio insight

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