In recent years, shifting client needs and expectations have led to a more proactive legacy market focused on broader strategic uses, and as acquirers, brokers and advisers work to secure repeat and new business, establishing trust and partnership is vital, according to market experts.
Last month, Reinsurance News, in partnership with run-off specialist RiverStone International, held a legacy market roundtable in New York City around the annual AIRROC conference, which brings together professionals in the sector.
The 90-minute session featured eight leaders from across the legacy re/insurance sector, representing acquirers, brokers, legal, and advisory.
The full, comprehensive roundtable report will be published in the coming weeks, but until then, below are some quotes from the representative of our kind sponsor, RiverStone International’s Eli Edson, Head of M&A, North America.
“If I think about this year and where we’ve been successful, we’ve had three material transactions announced in the public space, and those transactions supported cedents that are repeat sellers in the legacy market,” said Edson. “We’ve been fortunate to establish relationships with these sellers, and they continue to be mostly broker-led transactions. We do have the benefit of having a strong working relationship with these cedents. So, regarding their expectations, they know what legacy is, and they very much use it as a strategic tool.”
Edson also highlighted new entrants to the legacy space, stating that the broker community does a great job of identifying an opportunity.
“There are expectations that are set related to the various reinsurers in play, but you have to really work hard to foster trust throughout the process and be transparent. There’s the actual deal element, there’s executing a contract, but then there’s a lot that comes after that and just making sure that the client understands the process and they understand the expectations, so you can give clear elements that you know they need to hear and see in order to feel comfortable moving forward,” he said.
Expanding on what a successful legacy partnership looks like today, Edson emphasised that it is built on trust.
“There are different elements of partnership, but at the cedent level, it’s establishing a very clear understanding of what the transaction looks like pre and post close. And from there, it’s really about living up to our end of the bargain,” he said.
Adding: “So, establishing that trust and that partnership is huge. It takes years, and we’re very mindful that trust can be lost quite quickly. So, it’s pivotal to continue to protect what has been built as new opportunities come through related to that specific partnership.”
For the 2026 legacy market roundtable in New York City, we were joined by the following participants:
- Eli Edson, Head of M&A, North America, RiverStone International.
- Brent Hoffman, Chief Claims Officer, Enstar.
- Marty Rosemann, Global Head Transaction & Legacy Management, Swiss Re.
- Angela Sampson, Managing Director, Global Structured Solutions, Marsh Re.
- Victor Nelligan, Legacy Reinsurance Broker, Aon.
- Stewart Richmond, Vice Chair AIRROC (The RiverStone Group).
- Ryan Heyrana, Senior Vice President of Legacy Solutions, Brown & Brown.
- Vikram Sidhu, Corporate Insurance & Regulatory Partner, Mayer Brown LLP.
Stay tuned, as we’ll be releasing the full 2026 Reinsurance News New York City Legacy Roundtable, in partnership with RiverStone International, in the coming weeks, which will include more commentary from our sponsor and extensive insights from all of the other participants.
