The global risk landscape is changing rapidly as a result of climate volatility, cyber threats and the rapid rise of AI. This means that the role of an insurance executive has never been more critical.
The industryâs most influential leaders are those who successfully bridge the gap between traditional actuarial discipline and frontier technology.
In this week's Top 10, InsurTech Digital celebrates some of the most influential insurance leaders who are leading the charge â redefining resilience, utilising data-backed strategies to protect global capital and ensuring stability in an increasingly unpredictable world.
10. Adam Clifford
Role: CEO of International Commercial Insurance
Company: AIG
Rejoining AIG in December as CEO of International Commercial Insurance, Adam now leads the firmâs underwriting and distribution strategy across the UK, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Latin America.
Adam is an insurance veteran with 30 years of technical insurance experience, overseeing AIGâs most complex segments, including Global Specialty and Multinational.
His expertise in commercial risk management â honed through leadership roles at Everest and Chubb â enables him to deliver sophisticated, data-backed coverage solutions for some of the worldâs largest companies navigating a volatile international risk landscape.
9. Peter Burton
Role: Group Chief Underwriting Officer
Company: QBE Insurance Group
Peter is the central architect of QBEâs global risk appetite and underwriting standards.
Since his promotion to his current role in late 2023, Peter has focused on enhancing underwriting consistency and managing complex risk aggregations across QBEâs international footprint.
With more than 15 years at the company under his belt, including leadership in energy and sustainable markets, he now spearheads QBEâs move toward agentic AI to automate complex risk assessment for its clients, ensuring technical profitability in a volatile P&C landscape.
8. Françoise Gilles
Role: Group Chief Risk Officer
Company: AXA Group
As Group Chief Risk Officer at AXA, Françoiseâs influence extends across the entire global risk landscape.
Appointed to the role in 2024 and serving as the 2026 Chair of the CRO Forum, she is the primary guardian of AXAâs vast underwriting portfolio.
Françoise is known across the industry for her ability to bridge capital management with product strategy, ensuring AXA remains solvent and strategic amid systemic shifts.
Her leadership centres on a focus on resilience by design, integrating sophisticated climate-risk modelling and cyber-exposure analytics into the core underwriting process.
7. J. Patrick Gallagher Jr
Role: Chairman and CEO
Company: Gallagher
Starting his career at Gallagher as a Production Account Executive more than 50 years ago, Pat now oversees one of the largest risk management and consulting firms globally as the companyâs Chairman and CEO.
A leader defined by his deep operational roots, he has spent decades transforming the firm into a powerhouse with more than 50,000 employees.
Having been in the top job for more than three decades, Pat's leadership has helped Gallagher become a bridge between the global insurance carrier market and the risk mitigation needs of multinational enterprises.
6. Andreas Berger
Role: Group Chief Executive Officer
Company: Swiss Re
As Group Chief Executive Officer of Swiss Re, Andreas is an architect of global reinsurance strategy.
With a career spanning pivotal roles at Gerling and Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty, Andreas brings a sophisticated understanding of international commercial programmes and broker distribution.
Now at Swiss Re, he is steering the company through a time of evolving systemic threats – ranging from climate volatility to cyber risk – while maintaining the firm’s status as a premier provider of capital and technical insight.
5. Oliver Bäte
Role: CEO
Company: Allianz
Oliver has been the Chairman of the Board of Management at Allianz since 2015.
A former McKinsey & Company Director, he joined Allianz in 2008, working roles including COO and CFO before leading the insurerâs transformation focused on digitalisation and global growth.
Oliver is known across the insurance space for his data-centric approach to risk, pivoting Allianz toward AI-driven pricing and resilience against climate volatility.
His leadership ensures Allianz remains one of the worldâs most valuable insurance brands, providing robust, technically superior protection for multinational enterprises.
4. Kevin Rampe
Role: Global Claims & Insurance Officer
Company: Chubb
Harnessing nearly three decades of regulatory and operational expertise, Kevin has just been appointed Senior Vice President and Global Claims Officer at Chubb.
In his new role, Kevin oversees the technical execution of Chubbâs delivery of world-class claims service, integrating sophisticated claims strategy with executive administration across the insurer's global network.
As a former New York State insurance official, his strength lies in his rare blend of regulatory mastery and high-stakes crisis management.
By merging sophisticated legal depth with predictive claims strategy, Kevin will ensure Chubb delivers the precision and reliability required by its clients.
3. John Doyle
Role: President & CEO
Company: Marsh McLennan
As President and CEO of Marsh McLennan, John is one of the leading strategists of the global risk landscape.
His strength as an insurance leader stems from a rare dual mastery of carrier-side underwriting and high-level brokerage.
Managing more than 85,000 employees, John uses sophisticated data analytics to bridge the gap between complex corporate risks and global capital.
His role ensures its clients remain resilient against climate and cyber volatilities.
2. Dr Christoph Jurecka
Role: Group CEO
Company: Munich Re
Joining Munich Re as Chief Financial Officer in 2019, Christoph became Group CEO in January 2026.
Since assuming the CEO role, he has championed scientific innovation and sustainability to navigate systemic global volatility.
His strength as an insurance leader comes from his scientist-strategist profile â a rare combination of high-level academic rigor and deep operational experience.
By merging rigorous mathematical precision (Christoph has a PhD in Technical Physics) with decades of financial leadership, he ensures Munich Re remains the ultimate technical anchor for some of the worldâs largest and most powerful companies.
1. Warren Buffett
Role: Chairman
Company: Berkshire Hathaway
Warren stepped down from his role as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at the end of 2025 but the 95-year-old still works daily as the company’s Chairman.
He acquired struggling New England textile manufacturer Berkshire Hathaway in 1965 into a diversified, more than US$1tn conglomerate.
This has positioned him as one of the most influential insurance strategists in the world.
It’s his leadership that can be credited for steering Berkshire Hathaway to become the world’s largest insurer by nonbanking assets, surpassing Allianz with approximately US$1.15tn to US$1.2tn in assets.
