BellTower Partners Makes Minority Investment
in Ascot
NEW
YORK, Sept. 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ascot Group
Limited, the Bermuda-based global
specialty insurance company ("Ascot" or "the company"), today
announced that Kewsong Lee, the Founder and CEO of BellTower
Partners ("BellTower"), will be appointed Chairman of the Ascot
Board of Directors. Mr. Lee will succeed Neill Currie, Ascot's Executive Chairman, who
will assume the role of Independent Director.
Mr. Lee possesses more than three decades of strategic and
organizational experience cultivated from years of leading a
diverse array of large, complex global organizations.
Most recently, Mr. Lee founded BellTower, a private holding
company that accesses and invests permanent capital in private
companies. His experience in the insurance industry began with his
active involvement and board memberships at RenaissanceRe Holdings
and Arch Capital, on whose board he served as lead director. While
serving as Chief Executive Officer of The Carlyle Group from 2018
through 2022, Mr. Lee initiated and oversaw the firm's successful
strategy to acquire and expand Fortitude Re.
In connection with Mr. Lee's appointment, BellTower is making a
minority investment in Ascot to help expand the company's resources
and support its strategic growth plans. Terms of the transaction
were not disclosed.
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board ("CPP Investments"), a
global investment management organization that manages the assets
of the Canada Pension Plan, will continue to maintain the
significant majority ownership position in Ascot following the
close of the transaction.
Jonathan Zaffino, Group President
and Chief Executive Officer of Ascot, said, "On behalf of the Board
of Directors, I'd like to welcome Kew to the Ascot Board. Kew's appointment as Chairman complements the
existing skillsets represented on our Board, and we look forward to
benefitting from his additional guidance as a proven leader with a
track record of success in the financial and insurance industry. As
Ascot continues to scale its global platform and expand its
ecosystem of talented underwriters, we are confident that
Kew's contributions and unique
skills will be highly accretive to Ascot as we continue on the
company's growth trajectory."
Sam Blaichman, Managing Director,
CPP Investments and Ascot Board Director, said, "We look forward to
working with Kew and BellTower in
this next chapter in Ascot's growth journey, as the management team
continues to develop solutions to help clients navigate today's
challenging risk landscape. I'd also like to take this opportunity
to thank Neill for his many valuable contributions as Executive
Chairman over many years."
Mr. Lee said, "As a global participant in the insurance and
reinsurance industries, Ascot is consistently achieving strong
results, and I look forward to working with Jonathan and his
talented team to continue scaling the business as we focus on
long-term, sustainable growth and return on capital. BellTower
believes there is tremendous opportunity ahead for Ascot, and I am
excited to partner with CPP Investments and management to help
drive significant value creation."
"Since Ascot's founding in 2001, the company has made
significant progress towards achieving its mission of offering a
wide range of specialty insurance products responsibly and
thoughtfully," said Mr. Currie. "On a personal note, having known
Kew for over 30 years, since the
formation of RenaissanceRe in 1993, I am certain that having an
executive of his caliber join the Board will position the business
for continued success as we build on the strong momentum that our
talented management team has set in motion."
About Kewsong Lee
Kewsong Lee is the founder and CEO
of BellTower Partners, a private holding company formed in 2023
that accesses and invests permanent capital to acquire significant
and influential ownership positions in private companies. Prior to
BellTower, Mr. Lee served as the Chief Executive Officer of The
Carlyle Group and was on the Board of Directors from 2018 to 2022,
having initially joined as Deputy Chief Investment Officer for
Private Equity in 2013. Before Carlyle, Mr. Lee was at Warburg Pincus for 21
years, where he was a Partner and member of the Executive
Management Group.
Mr. Lee is currently the Chair of Lincoln Center Theater,
Director of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and Vice Chair
for the Partnership for New York
City. He also is a strategic advisor for FCLT Global. Mr.
Lee has extensive public and private corporate board experience,
having served as a director of companies such as TransDigm,
Neiman Marcus and Aramark. With
respect to the insurance industry, while at Warburg Pincus, Mr. Lee
drove significant investments such as RenaissanceRe Holdings and
Arch Capital, on whose boards he served. In addition, during his
tenure at Carlyle, Mr. Lee
spearheaded the firm's successful strategy to acquire and expand
Fortitude Re.
Mr. Lee earned his AB in applied mathematics in economics at
Harvard College and his MBA from Harvard
Business School.
About Ascot Group
Ascot Group is a global specialty
insurance and reinsurance group with a record of underwriting
excellence and superior claims service. Founded in 2001, Ascot
provides a broad range of customized property and casualty products
to customers worldwide through its Lloyd's, Bermuda and US market platforms.
Ascot Group is majority owned by Canada Pension Plan Investment
Board ("CPP Investments"), a global investment management
organization that manages the assets of the Canada Pension Plan
("CPP") in the best interest of the more than 22 million
contributors and beneficiaries of the CPP. CPP Investments is the
largest pension plan fund in Canada, totaling C$646
billion in net assets. CPP Investments is rated 'AAA' by
S&P and Moody's. For more information on Ascot, please visit
www.ascotgroup.com.
About BellTower Partners
BellTower Partners is a
private holding company that accesses and invests permanent capital
to acquire significant and influential ownership positions in
private businesses. BellTower focuses on partnering with management
teams in well-positioned companies that it can actively shape and
build to create significant value over the long-term. For more
information, please visit www.belltowerpartners.com.
About CPP Investments
Canada Pension Plan Investment
Board (CPP Investments™) is a professional investment management
organization that manages the Fund in the best interest of the more
than 22 million contributors and beneficiaries of the Canada
Pension Plan. In order to build diversified portfolios of assets,
investments are made around the world in public equities, private
equities, real estate, infrastructure and fixed income.
Headquartered in Toronto, with
offices in Hong Kong, London, Mumbai, New York
City, San Francisco, São
Paulo and Sydney, CPP Investments
is governed and managed independently of the Canada Pension Plan
and at arm's length from governments. At June 30, 2024, the Fund totaled C$646.8 billion. For more information, please
visit www.cppinvestments.com or follow us
on LinkedIn, Instagram or on
X @CPPInvestments.
Legal Advisors
Ascot was advised by Debevoise
& Plimpton and BellTower was advised by McDermott Will & Emery and Willkie Farr & Gallagher.
Media
Ascot Group
Philippa
Ushio
Prosek Partners
pushio@prosek.com
pro-ascot@prosek.com
BellTower Partners
Charles V. Zehren
Managing Director
RUBENSTEIN
czehren@rubenstein.com
212-843-8590
CPP Investments
Steve
McCool
Managing Director, Global Corporate Communications, CPP
Investments
smccool@cppib.com
+44 20 3947 3002
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SOURCE Ascot Group