QBE Insurance appoints UK-based Beazley's Andrew Horton as group CEO

(Reuters) - Australia's QBE Insurance Group on Wednesday said it appointed Andrew Horton, UK-based specialist insurer Beazley Plc's CEO, as its new group head.

Horton will replace interim group Chief Executive Officer Richard Pryce, who took over from Patrick Regan in September last year after a probe found Regan had fallen short of the Australian insurer's ethics and conduct standards.

The appointment comes at a time when QBE is looking to recover from the blows of coronavirus lockdowns and a surge in catastrophe claims that plunged it into an annual loss.

"(Horton's) deep understanding of the insurance landscape and the opportunities and challenges across each of our markets, see him well placed to build QBE for the future," QBE Chairman Mike Wilkins said in a statement.

Horton will start as QBE's group chief executive in September, Australia's biggest insurer by market capitalisation said.

Beazley, in a London stock exchange filing, announced Horton's departure after 18 years, a stint that included leading its overseas expansion as CEO since 2008. Before that, he held the position of chief financial officer.

(Reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru)