
The Voice of Insurance
Understanding how a globally integrated, family‑owned broker like Burns & Wilcox Global Solutions navigates a competitive, tech‑driven insurance landscape offers insight into the future of wholesale broking and risk placement. The discussion underscores the importance of long‑term ownership, digital innovation, and product development for insurers and brokers seeking resilience and growth in a shifting market.
Burns & Wilcox Global Solutions operates as the London‑based wholesale arm of the US‑headquartered Kaufman Group. The unit unites the former Chesterfield broker, a non‑marine specialist, with Lockhane Patrick, a hull‑focused marine broker. With just under 100 professionals across London, Amsterdam and other hubs, the firm balances its client base: about one‑third of premium comes from the parent’s own brands—Burns & Wilcox, RB Jones and Attain—while the remaining two‑thirds is generated by external third‑party cedents. This blend provides both stability and room for expansion.
Strategically, the business doubles down on delegated‑authority programs and hull marine lines, leveraging long‑standing relationships that span decades. It is also actively pursuing adjacent opportunities such as open‑market property, cargo and other specialty lines, aiming to broaden its portfolio without straying from core competencies. In a softening market where competition intensifies, the firm emphasizes added value through bespoke product design, flexible non‑admitted solutions, and deep market insight, positioning itself as a preferred conduit for complex risks worldwide.
Innovation underpins the growth agenda. B&W Global Solutions invests heavily in digital platforms, AI‑driven underwriting tools and the facilitation of delegated books, enabling faster quote turnaround and more accurate risk assessment. Recent discussions with Lloyd’s syndicates and the development of fund‑of‑funds structures illustrate a commitment to diversified, low‑volatility capital. Family ownership fuels a long‑term perspective and nimble decision‑making, allowing the firm to act quickly on strategic opportunities while maintaining disciplined, sustainable growth.
I really enjoyed today’s interview because it outlines what is quite an original proposition in a very competitive marketplace.
Jonathan Tritton is the Managing Director of Burns & Wilcox Global Solutions, which is the London and International wholesale broking arm of the US-headquartered Kaufman Group.
The group has been formed via the coming together of the Chesterfield and Lochain Patrick broking businesses.
So far, so familiar, you might say – a US-led broking group with London operations is hardly a big deal.
But Jonathan is a recent joiner and the pitch he makes for his new employer is compelling.
As the insurance value chain becomes more technologically advanced and much more efficient at allocating the right risks to the right distribution channels and the right forms of underwriting capital, despite the headwinds of the softening market, Jonathan is very optimistic about the growth prospects for his business unit.
With a good combination of, sufficient scale and resources to be in the game and an enormous amount of room to grow, Jonathan’s optimism has an authentic ring to it.
In this podcast specific growth plans, the digitisation and facilitisation of the market and Jonathan’s ambitions for a Lloyd’s syndicate as well as his thoughts on AI all get a full airing.
Jonathan has been on the podcast before and is a very relaxed, eloquent and energetic interviewee, so this is an episode that will fly by.
LINKS
We thank our naming sponsor AdvantageGo:
https://www.advantagego.com
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