Press release | August 21, 2026
Allianz Commercial appoints Emma Woolley as President Global Specialty and UK Region
Allianz Commercial announced today the appointment of Emma Woolley as President Global Specialty and UK Region, subject to the usual regulatory approval. She will join the Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE (AGCS) [1] Board of Management and will organizationally report to Thomas Lillelund, Chief Executive Officer at Allianz Commercial.
Emma will lead Allianz Commercial’s Global Specialty Lines of Business and the UK markets, bringing together oversight of a key growth segment and one of the core Commercial insurance markets. The appointment reflects Allianz Commercial's ambition to further expand its worldwide Specialty business and strengthen its position in the UK market, building on its commitment to delivering market-leading solutions for clients and broker partners. Emma will work closely with Allianz Commercial’s regional Presidents to further expand Allianz’s Specialty portfolio globally as well as with its Chief Underwriting Officer, Vanessa Maxwell Neverton and Chief Distribution Officer, Jeremy Sharpe. She will join Allianz once her current professional commitments have ceased, no later than February 2027.
Thomas Lillelund, Chief Executive Officer at Allianz Commercial, comments: “Our clear ambition is to be the most trusted commercial insurer in the market. The appointment of Emma, as a leading figure in the global Specialty and UK market, bringing extensive leadership and specialty underwriting experience, together with a deep understanding of the UK markets, reinforces our commitment to this goal and to delivering the best possible service for all our stakeholders. We are delighted to welcome her to our leadership team, and I am looking forward to working with her.”
Executive profile: Emma Woolley
Emma has almost 30 years of experience in the insurance industry with a career spanning executive leadership, compliance, governance, and broking and joins Allianz Commercial from AIG Talbot Underwriting, where she currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of AIG’s Lloyd’s Specialty platform. Prior to that, she was Global Head of Marine for AIG, after spending five years at Lancashire Group, where her final role was as Chief Executive Officer for Lancashire Syndicates. Earlier in her career, she held leadership positions at Canopius Group, Swiss Re and BMS Group.
[1] AGCS as the legal entity of Allianz with responsibility for Allianz Commercial.
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About Allianz Commercial
Allianz Commercial is the center of expertise and global line of Allianz Group for insuring mid-sized businesses, large enterprises and specialist risks. Among our customers are the world’s largest consumer brands, financial institutions and industry players, the global aviation and shipping industry, as well as family-owned and medium enterprises, which are the backbone of the economy. We also cover unique risks such as offshore wind parks, infrastructure projects or film productions.
Powered by the employees, financial strength, and network of the world’s #1 insurance brand Allianz, as ranked by Interbrand, we work together to help our customers prepare for what’s ahead: They trust us to provide a wide range of traditional and alternative risk transfer solutions, outstanding risk consulting and multinational services as well as seamless claims handling.
The trade name Allianz Commercial brings together the large corporate insurance business of Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) and the commercial insurance business of national Allianz Property & Casualty entities serving mid-sized companies. We are present in over 200 countries and territories either though our own teams or the Allianz Group network and partners. In 2025, the integrated business of Allianz Commercial generated around €17,3 billion in gross premium globally.
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