Allianz Commercial has announced the appointment of Lara Martiner as the global head of Alternative Risk Transfer (ART) at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE (AGCS), effective April 1, 2025.
Martiner, 47, will continue in her role as CEO of Allianz Risk Transfer AG, a subsidiary of AGCS. She takes over from Grant Maxwell, who is set to depart from Allianz at the end of June.
A qualified lawyer, Martiner joined Allianz Group in 2011 as legal counsel and head of compliance in Zurich. Over the years, she has held multiple leadership roles within AGCS and the ART division. In October 2021, she joined the executive board of Allianz Risk Transfer AG and was later appointed CEO and general counsel of the unit in 2023.
Allianz Commercial considers Alternative Risk Transfer (ART) a strategic priority, catering to clients seeking to complement traditional insurance with non-conventional solutions. These include structured insurance, captive fronting, parametric products, and sustainability-linked solutions. In 2024, the ART unit underwrote over €2.0 billion in gross written premium, including fronting premiums.
Growth in Alternative Risk Transfer
Alternative Risk Transfer strategies enable organizations to manage risks beyond conventional insurance mechanisms, utilizing financial instruments such as structured programs, parametric solutions, and captive insurance arrangements.
In 2024, structured and parametric solutions emerged as the most traded ART products, driven by market pressures in property insurance and clients with substantial loss histories.
The ART market exhibited stable pricing trends, with structured programs and parametric non-catastrophe solutions maintaining consistent pricing. However, parametric natural catastrophe solutions experienced rate variations between -5% and +10%.
The demand for ART solutions remains strong, particularly among clients with complex risk profiles or adverse loss records. Structured programs and parametric solutions are expected to remain key tools in addressing insurance gaps and offering efficiencies beyond traditional coverage options.
