Board of Directors

Andy Colbran

NuVenture CEO

Prior to establishing NuVenture, Andy was Managing Director of Aon’s UK MGA, Aon Underwriting Managers, for 13 years during which time he oversaw significant growth and expansion of the business. He has a strong desire to fundamentally change the ways in which MGAs operate by taking full advantage of modern technology, simplifying, and automating processes, and using external data sources to drive more efficient underwriting and deliver improved results to capital providers.

Arun Balakrishnan

Xceedance CEO

Arun has built his career around promoting innovation and transformation in the insurance business. He has more than 10 years of experience launching start-ups in the industry. Arun’s vision and industry experience are rooted in a desire to revitalize processes, streamline operations, and provide growth opportunities. Prior to founding Xceedance, he was the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Insurance in India.

John Begley

Xceedance Non-Executive Director

John was appointed to the Board of Xceedance in January 2017, and he currently serves as chair of the Board’s Audit Committee. John worked at Aon UK Ltd for 13 years in a variety of roles, notably Chief Operating Officer — Global Broking Centre and EMEA, and Director, Operational Excellence, EMEA. Prior to joining Aon, John worked for BAA (UK airports operator including Heathrow and Gatwick) as Group Financial Controller.

Paolo Cuomo

NuVenture Non-Executive Director

Paolo joined NuVenture as Non-Executive Director in December 2021. He is one of the founders of InsTech London and brings a wealth of experience and in-depth knowledge in the insurtech space. Paolo works to support growth in the London insurance market through efficient, effective processes, smart use of technology, and focus on relevant innovation.

Leadership Team

Danny Booth

Director of IT and Operations

Prior to joining NuVenture, Danny spent 25 years in the insurance market in senior leadership and director roles, spanning the insurer, MGA, and broking business models, in London and internationally.

Over this time, he has been instrumental in delivering significant growth globally by leading the technology effort on more than 40 acquisitions, and supporting them with a blend of IT delivery models.

Peter Horncastle

Director of Finance and Compliance

Peter is a qualified accountant with 16 years in the insurance market working across the whole value chain.

His past roles include responsibility for planning Hiscox Insurance Company’s (at the time) £350m annual turnover business, Group Finance Manager at specialist insurance group Argenta plc, Financial Controller at an MGA start-up, and most recently Finance Director and board member at independent Lloyd’s broker, Meridian Risk Solutions.

Peter’s ambition is to make the insurance market simpler and more transparent, particularly in regards to how customer experience and underwriting performance translate into financial outperformance.

Management Team

Tashi

Senior Manager, Programs

Prior to joining NuVenture, Tashi was Account Manager in Xceedance for seven years during which time she focused on process redesign, automation initiatives, and transitions for insurance clients of Xceedance. She aspires to create value for insurance customers and improve customer experience through creating a robust framework for setup and management of MGAs and process transformation to drive efficiencies.

Richard Baxter

Finance Manager

Richard is a CIMA-qualified Finance Manager with significant experience in the FTSE 100, including project accounting across multiple countries. His experience in the insurance industry includes management roles at Median Risk Solutions and Hiscox. Richard’s role at NuVenture includes overseeing daily operations, cashflow, income, expense budgeting and financial planning and analysis (FP&A).

Karen Wepener

Marketing Manager

Karen is a CIM-qualified marketer with more than 15 years’ experience. Prior to joining NuVenture, Karen was running all strategic and operational marketing activity for a fast-growing SME. Her experience also includes highly-regulated industries such as law and accountancy. At NuVenture, Karen’s role is to highlight why underwriters and capacity providers should choose to work with NuVenture, and to support our MGAs in marketing their businesses.