AXIS Capital Holdings has announced the rebranding of its third-party capital unit as AXIS ILS and the appointment of Chris Caponigro as global head of AXIS ILS. Caponigro will join the company on July 22.
In his new role, Caponigro will oversee the insurer’s activities related to third-party capital under management. He will be based in the company’s New York and New Jersey offices and will report to AXIS Re CEO Steve Arora.
“Chris brings a unique mix of deep ILS and investor experience, combined with a technical background in underwriting and strong interpersonal and leadership skills,” Arora said. “Our team and our investors will benefit significantly from the expertise, perspective and partnership that Chris brings. In recent years, we’ve elevated AXIS as a player in the ILS space. the addition of Chris to our team, combined with our rebranding of the business, demonstrates our commitment to investors and the priority that we are placing on growing our ILS business.”
“I’m excited to join AXIS, a leading underwriter and portfolio manager,” Caponigro said. “I am impressed by the company’s ability to customise portfolios for partners and its strong emphasis on service and responsiveness. AXIS has a terrific platform and I believe there is significant potential to further grow the business while leveraging our ability to provide investors with broad access to the global specialty insurance and reinsurance markets.”
Prior to joining AXIS, Caponigro served as head of business development at Mt. Logan Re/Everest Re. In that role, he led investor relations and global capital fundraising responsibility for Everest’s private capital arm. Before joining Mt. Logan Re/Everest Re, he served as head of North American catastrophe lines at Platinum Underwriters Bermuda. He has also held senior underwriting and corporate positions at Platinum and St. Paul Re.
