Canopius appoints DeCouto and Morgan to reinsurance CUO and CFO roles

Canopius has announced changes to its reinsurance senior leadership team in Bermuda.

The company revealed the appointment of Jesse DeCouto (pictured) as chief underwriting officer (CUO) and Tonia Morgan as chief financial officer (CFO) of Canopius Reinsurance.

Morgan takes up her new role on 1 July, succeeding Teresa Gallant, while DeCouto joins on 1 September, in a newly created role.

DeCouto joins the business as CUO in Bermuda and was most recently global CUO for Validus Reinsurance.

Starting his career as a pricing actuary in 2000, he brings nearly 25 years’ of experience, Canopius said.

DoCouto will also serve as Canopius’ global product leader for reinsurance, overseeing the governance, performance and standards of reinsurance underwriting teams across the business.

Morgan joins Canopius from Axa XL, where she was CFO of Bermuda reinsurance.

Canopius said she brings more than two decades of finance experience in the reinsurance industry, including technical knowledge of US GAAP, the Bermuda regulatory environment, reinsurance and insurance linked securities (ILS).

These are the latest in a series of senior reinsurance hires at Canopius: Charles Cooper joined as CEO and global head of reinsurance in September 2023; and Brenton Slade joined as head of ILS in November.

Morgan and DeCouto will both report to Cooper, who commented: “We are steadily increasing the level of reinsurance capacity we can offer in the market in a very targeted way and assembling a small team of senior leaders with the expertise and networks we need to realise our growth strategy.

“Jesse and Tonia are exactly that, representing some of the best talent in the market - Jesse brings unrivalled underwriting experience and broker relationships, Tonia will be instrumental in facilitating the small, entrepreneurial culture that we need to drive growth in a targeted way. Alongside Brenton, we will now have the ideal people in place to embark on the next phase of our strategy.”

DeCouto said: “The growth plan which Charles has outlined and the opportunity to work with such an accomplished and well-respected team is exciting, compelling, and ultimately too good to pass up. I am delighted to join the Canopius Reinsurance Senior team at this formative time for the business and look forward to this exciting new challenge.”

Morgan added: “With a strong understanding of the Reinsurance market in Bermuda, I am looking forward to creating an impact within an entrepreneurial team that is looking to build an enduring business in the region. It’s an exceptionally talented team and I’m excited to get started.”