Industry veterans launch holding company Novel Financial

Novel Financial Holdings LLC, a holding company that oversees insurers for managing general underwriters, launched Wednesday, led by industry veterans including former PartnerRe Ltd. CEO Jacques Bonneau and Rob Bredahl, vice chairman of Howden Re.

Mr. Bonneau will be chairman, and Mr. Bredahl, CEO of Novel. Mr. Bonneau retired as CEO and president of PartnerRe last year. Before that, he held leadership roles at Chubb Ltd.

Mr. Bredahl will continue in his roles as vice chairman of Howden Re and executive chairman of Howden Capital Markets and Advisory, in addition to his new role, a Novel statement said.

Novel also named Chris Coleman, most recently group chief financial officer of Aspen Insurance Group, as chief financial officer and David Drury, previously executive vice president of underwriting at SiriusPoint Ltd., as head of analytics and risk.

Novel, based in Jersey City, New Jersey, will manage policyholder-owned reciprocal exchanges through ownership of attorney-in-facts and traditional stock insurers through direct ownership and service contracts, combining fee income with insurer underwriting results.

These policyholder-owned insurers write business through a strategic partnership with SageSure, an MGU focused on catastrophe-exposed property markets.

Novel recently acquired Forza Insurance Holdings, which owns the attorney-in-facts of SureChoice Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange and Elevate Reciprocal Exchange.