Daily briefing: Monday - Douetil is down but not out

An interesting show of strength from Achilles, the private equity vehicle that bought a stake in Brit earlier this year, with today’s news that longstanding chief executive Dane Douetil is to stand down.

The insurer isn’t saying why, but the timing, six months after the completion of the acquisition, tells its own story. Sources suggest there may have been a disagreement over the future of the company, but where the new owners wish to take it remains to be seen.

Their choice of a replacement could be one indication: Mark Cloutier is a Bermudian old hand with stronger links to the reinsurance world than the primary market. This indicates a global focus, and perhaps growth in Brit’s reinsurance division. Either way, Cloutier will have some tough decisions to make, with cost-cutting likely to feature prominently on his to-do list.

Brit’s profits were down 90% at the half-year, to £6.4m, with a combined operating ratio of 104.8%. Granted, given the nat-cat run and compared to some Lloyd’s peers, this doesn’t look too bad in context – but it seems the private equity backers aren’t willing to play the long game. Meanwhile, Douetil, a stalwart of the London market, is unlikely to stay away for long.

Mageean makes broker move

Talking of returns, we say welcome back to Bernard Mageean this week, with the announcement of a new role at Broker Network and Countryside. This is Mageean’s first foray into the broker world – he moved to QBE to spearhead a growth drive in property in 2008 following a man-and-boy career at RSA. His inside knowledge of how the big insurers think could be a valuable tool for the smaller brokers that make up the networks.

The unstoppable Mr Burke

Finally, JLT continues its relentless pursuit of growth with the acquisition of Chilean broker Orbital. Chief executive Dominic Burke has already seen the broker overtake Willis and Marsh in the Top 50 Brokers pecking order. Where will he stop?