MGU chief executive to retire after being diagnosed with MS

Carbon Underwriting co-founder and chief executive Nick Tye has announced that he is retiring from the MGU due to ill health.

Tye has been diagnosed with progressive Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and, as a result, has decided to step back from his role to focus on his health and spend more time with his family.

With his retirement, fellow co-founder and chief underwriting officer Jacqui Ferrier has taken up the role of chief executive with immediate effect.

Tye said: “Stepping down was not an easy decision, but following my diagnosis of progressive MS, it’s the right one. I want to focus my time and energy on my health and my family.

“Ferrier’s deep understanding of the business, her integrity and drive make her the ideal person to take the business forward and I know that Carbon Underwriting will flourish under her direction.

“I wish the whole team every success for the future and I have every confidence that Carbon Underwriting will continue to fly.”

‘Highlight of my career’

Tye co-founded Carbon Underwriting in 2018 with Ferrier and managing director Ben Laidlaw.

Over the last six years, he has helped build the firm’s underwriting platform. He also oversaw the launch of the MGU as a Lloyd’s Syndicate-in-a-Box (SIAB) via Asta in 2020, transitioning to full syndicate status in 2023.

Tye said: “Building Carbon Underwriting has been the highlight of my career. From the very beginning we set out to create something genuinely different.

“It’s been a tremendous journey and I am so proud of what we have accomplished. Carbon Underwriting has always been defined by terrific people and excellent culture and our team is extraordinary.

“I’m deeply grateful for the friends, colleagues and partners who have supported us along the way.”

Ferrier added: “Tye is an inspiring leader, colleague and friend, and his vision and values run deep through the DNA of Carbon Underwriting.

“It’s an emotional time for all of us at Carbon Underwriting, but, in the spirit of Carbon Underwriting’s focus on humanism, one that we have been able to navigate closely together. We remain committed to the strategy we’ve built and the legacy Tye has been instrumental in building with us.”