Exclusive: Alcor names Graham head and hires DeCouto to lead new Atlanta office

By Chris Munro

July 21 - (The Insurer) - Alcor Group has appointed Joshua Graham as its new head, while the Beat Capital Partners subsidiary has also recruited Sophie DeCouto to build a book of U.S. E&S property business from its new Atlanta, Georgia office.

Graham has succeeded Chris Fisher as Alcor’s head. Graham and Fisher co-founded the MGA with backing from Beat in 2020. Fisher now serves the business in an advisory role.

DeCouto, who has been appointed CEO of Alcor USA, brings more than 20 years of underwriting leadership and market experience to the business.

In a statement, Alcor said DeCouto “brings a proven track record of driving growth and delivering tailored risk solutions across a range of complex lines”.

Prior to joining Alcor, DeCouto was vice president at Paragon Specialty Property. Earlier in her career, she held management and underwriting roles at Ironshore, IFG Companies, Axis and Allied World.

“(DeCouto) is a seasoned E&S professional with an exceptional reputation in the wholesale property market,” said Graham.

“Her leadership, industry insight, and underwriting expertise align with our mission of delivering trusted and effective solutions for our clients, with great service levels.

“Opening our office in Atlanta enables us to get closer to our clients and embed deeper relationships with our panel of key wholesale brokers."

The new Atlanta office complements Alcor’s existing operations in London and Bermuda, which all write property business for clients around the world and are backed by S&P A-plus-rated Lloyd’s capacity.

“We look forward to working more closely with wholesale brokers and their clients in the U.S. whilst continuing to serve our existing stakeholders in London and Bermuda,” said Graham.

“This expansion will enable us to widen our network of wholesale brokers and provide better service locally for clients,” he added.

Alcor writes a book of insurance and reinsurance property business with coverage offered across multiple territories with a particular emphasis on the U.S., Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Europe and the Caribbean.

Its clients include real estate companies, government bodies, healthcare organisations, power generation businesses and energy assets.

Alcor’s underwriters in London, Bermuda and the U.S. provide coverage for direct physical loss or damage, business interruption and natural catastrophes, with limits of up to $10 million offered on both an all-risks or single-peril basis.

Lloyd’s coverholder Alcor is one of the units within Beat, a London-based incubator of underwriting franchises. Other underwriting operations under the Beat umbrella include proRISE Insurance Services and Fallow Grove Insurance Services.

Beat was acquired by Ambac Financial Group in 2024.