Howden Re Strengthens Capabilities

Howden Re Strengthens Capabilities in the DACH Region with Key Senior Appointments in Germany

London, 18 October 2024 – Howden Re, the reinsurance and risk advisory arm of Howden, the international insurance intermediary group, has announced the build out of its capabilities in the DACH region with four senior appointments in Germany.

Lars Nelson joins as Managing Director, Head of German branch, Howden Re; Dr. Björn Hagendorff is also appointed Managing Director, Head of Regional Clients, Germany; Dr.-Ing. Mathias Raschke joins as Director, Nat Cat Modelling, Germany and Austria, and Verena Schärtl, Dipl. Math. (univ.) & Aktuar (DAV), joins as Director, Head of Actuarial, Germany and Austria.

The appointments join the existing Howden Re team in the region including recent appointments Anke Salm-Reifferscheidt, Head of Broking & Strategy, Howden Re Germany & Austria, Wolfram Schultz, Head of Casualty Reinsurance, Continental Europe, and Alex Roth, Head of Capital and Operational Solutions. With the new additions, Howden Re has created a broad team of experts to serve Germany, offering local broking, catastrophe modelling, actuarial services, and client relations expertise, in addition to the strategic, capital and risk advisory capabilities of Howden Re and the wider Howden group.

Tobias Anderson, Head of Continental Europe, Howden Re International, commented: “We are thrilled to welcome Lars, Björn, Mathias and Verena to our team. The team’s combined expertise will enable us to enhance our service offering across all lines of reinsurance broking, modelling, analytics and client service, and reinforces our position as a leading provider of reinsurance and risk advisory solutions in Europe.”

Massimo Reina, CEO, Howden Re International, said: “Germany is the biggest economy in Europe. The expansion of our team is a key strategic step for Howden Re as we broaden our footprint, strengthen capabilities and demonstrate our commitment to delivering outstanding service and value to our clients in the DACH region.”

Lars Nelson will join Howden Re on 1 January 2025, bringing 20 years’ of reinsurance expertise, including roles at Aon and SiriusPoint in Germany. He was most recently Area Head and SVP at Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions based in Hamburg. From 2010 to 2023 he held various management roles at SiriusPoint, including General Manager and Underwriting Manager for Central Europe. Prior to that Nelson also completed over six years at Aon, where he focused on German as well as global client management.

Dr. Björn Hagendorff will join Howden Re on 1 November 2024. He joins from Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions Germany, bringing significant leadership as well as treaty-broking experience, particularly with German regional insurance companies. He began his broking career at Aon’s Reinsurance Solutions in 2012 and most recently served as Vice President and Deputy Area Head. Previously, Hagendorff was a Ph.D researcher at Hannover Re, where he focused on “Natural Catastrophes and Insurance Securitization – Performance and Risk Implications”.

Dr.-Ing. Mathias Raschke joined Howden Re on 1 September 2024. brings over 25 years of experience in Nat Cat research and modelling. Most recently, he served as a Nat Cat analyst at Ecclesia Reinsurance and a senior consultant for Nat Cat modelling at R+V Versicherung. Prior to this, he held research roles at ETH Zurich, IWSÖ Weimar, and Bauhaus University Weimar.

Verena Schärtl also joined Howden Re on 1 October 2024, bringing extensive experience in actuarial science and risk management. Prior to joining Howden Re, she led Solvency II quantitative reporting and ORSA reporting at WWK Versicherungen since 2016 and managed client projects across the DACH region at Guy Carpenter. Her expertise spans risk assessment, sustainability reporting, along with proficiency in various actuarial software and tools.