AXA XL has made six appointments in the Large Commercial, and Client and Distribution units, following the recent reorganisation of its Americas insurance operation. Donnacha Smyth, who previously managed the excess casualty segment, is named chief underwriting officer (CUO) for casualty, also assuming underwriting management of both primary and excess casualty in the Americas. Eric Donofrio, formerly CUO for aviation, will now oversee all specialty insurance lines in the Americas. Michele Sansone continues as CUO for property, managing commercial property insurance and now also leading the Multinational Solution team to support global client programmes. Michelle Chia expands her role as CUO for cyber in the Americas to include design professional and select professional insurance lines. Donna Nadeau, head of Large Commercial at AXA XL, comments: “By simplifying our structure, we are making it easier for our clients to address their insurance needs with fewer touchpoints. "Having Donnacha's team serve as a single point of contact for both primary and excess casualty coverage will increase efficiency in underwriting business and managing claims. Similarly, our large commercial clients will benefit from easy access to all specialty products under Eric’s oversight.” Additionally, June Dwyer will assume the role of head of broker relations, Large Commercial and Mid-Market, and Maria Duhart joins the Client and Distribution team at AXA XL in the Americas as head of East Zone, US. She previously served as CUO for specialty niche insurance. Matt O’Malley, chief client and distribution officer at AXA XL in the Americas, says: “With some 20 years of experience as a broker in addition to her carrier experience, June is well positioned to put our clients’ insurance needs front and centre.” He adds: “[Maria's] underwriting expertise, coupled with her ability to develop strong broker and client relationships, will be instrumental in helping us meet the diverse and complex needs of our brokers and clients in this region, which represents our largest concentration of business in the US."
