In this episode, Robin Merttens is joined by Julian Schoemig, CEO and Co-founder of Diesta, to explore why payments and settlements remain one of the insurance industry’s biggest unsolved problems, and what it will take to fix them.

From his early days selling boxing machines to Munich pubs to underwriting aviation at Munich Re, Julian’s career has been shaped by a single truth: business doesn’t count until the cash is in the bank. That mindset now underpins Diesta, a company building the financial plumbing to help insurers, brokers and MGAs move money with greater clarity, speed and control.

In this conversation, Julian shares:

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Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 376 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

What would happen if the next hurricane wasn’t just stronger but completely off the scale? Are we prepared for a Category 6 event, and would it even show up in our models?

In this panel discussion from InsTech’s July evening event The future of catastrophe risk: where science meets reality, supported by Inigo, Ruth Petrie leads a conversation on how insurers are responding to more extreme, uncertain and fast-changing catastrophe risks.

Featuring:

Together, they challenge the assumptions behind traditional catastrophe modelling, explore the limits of the Saffir-Simpson scale and ask whether imagination, not just data, will define the future of risk management.

In this conversation, the panel explores:

This is essential listening for exposure managers, underwriters, brokers and risk leaders looking to challenge conventional thinking and prepare for what’s next.

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Matthew Grant on LinkedIn.

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 375 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

In this episode, Matthew Grant sits down with Matthew Eagle, Head of Global Model Solutions and Advisory at Guy Carpenter, to explore how one of the industry's most respected voices sees the future of modelling, capital management and advisory in reinsurance.

With three decades of experience, Matthew reflects on what’s changed — and what hasn’t — in how reinsurers view risk. From the early days of catastrophe models to today’s generative AI agents and open modelling platforms, he shares how his team is helping insurers manage volatility, optimise capital and drive profitable growth.

In this episode, Matthew shares:

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Richard Hartley or Matthew Grant on LinkedIn.

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 374 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

In this episode, Matthew is joined once again by Richard Hartley to reflect on a major milestone in Cytora’s journey: its acquisition by US-based Applied Systems.

But as Richard makes clear, this isn’t the end of the road. It’s a platform for scale. Listeners will hear how Cytora evolved from tackling political risk to transforming how risk flows through commercial insurance. Richard shares practical lessons from scaling into the US, explains why they rebuilt their platform around large language models and outlines why being agnostic to input but opinionated on risk output is a game changer.

They also explore the cultural and technical alignment with Applied, the value of blending insurance expertise with external product thinking and what it really takes to make hard pivots, including knowing when to throw away what you’ve built.

In this episode, Richard shares:

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Richard Hartley or Matthew Grant on LinkedIn.

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 373 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

Jonathan Spry, CEO and co-founder of Envelop Risk, joins Robin Merttens for a deep dive into how data science, AI and portfolio-level modelling are transforming cyber reinsurance. As one of the earliest voices in the industry championing machine learning and systemic risk analysis, Jonathan shares what he's learned over nine years of building Envelop into a leading hybrid underwriter operating across London and Bermuda.

In his own words, this episode is about building smarter ways to understand, underwrite and capitalise on emerging risk — with cyber as just the starting point.

What you'll learn:

Jonathan also talks through Envelop's shift from MGA to reinsurer, how to think long-term in a volatile market and what kind of partnerships are needed to unlock new forms of risk.

Book recommendation from Jonathan: The Book of Why by Judea Pearl and Dana Mackenzie.

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Robin Merttens on LinkedIn. You can also contact Jonathan Spry on LinkedIn to start a conversation!

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 372 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

What happens when a major US insurance tech player sets its sights on Europe? This week, Robin Merttens speaks with Chris Quirk, VP and General Manager at Insurity, to unpack the drivers behind the company’s international expansion and what it signals for the wider market.

Chris brings a unique cross-market perspective, working with carriers, MGAs and brokers on both sides of the Atlantic. He shares how Insurity is navigating the challenges of scaling legacy systems into modern, cloud-native platforms and why interoperability and open ecosystems are now critical in a post-consolidation world.

Key themes include:

Chris also offers insight into where Insurity is investing over the next 12 months and why the industry may be underestimating just how much technology has matured.

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Robin Merttens on LinkedIn. You can also contact Christopher Quirk on LinkedIn to start a conversation!

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 371 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

In this special edition of the InsTech podcast, Robin introduces listeners to new colleague Chris Eberly, Insurance Practice Lead at Datos Insights, following Datos’ recent acquisition of InsTech. Chris brings more than 30 years of carrier experience and a unique practitioner’s perspective on the forces shaping insurance today.

Together they explore what this new chapter means for InsTech members, the wider insurance ecosystem, and why Datos’ blend of advisory, research and community makes a timely fit. Along the way, Chris shares why operational efficiency is top of the agenda, how underinsurance is being tackled, and why AI is no longer just hype but a genuine driver of transformation.

This conversation is part industry briefing, part fireside chat. Listeners will come away with a clearer view of the challenges and opportunities ahead — from regulatory pressure to CIO priorities — and hear how InsTech and Datos plan to deliver value together.

Robin also uncovers Chris’s surprising background outside insurance, including his lifelong passion for the carillon (a rare bell-tower instrument) and what raising six children and seventeen grandchildren has taught him about navigating complexity.

Key themes discussed include:

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Robin Merttens on LinkedIn. You can also contact Chris Eberly on LinkedIn to start a conversation!

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 370 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

What will the specialty insurance market look like a decade from now? Will we still be talking about legacy systems and manual processes, or will the model itself have changed?

In this panel discussion from InsTech’s Outpace. Outprice. Outperform event, Robin Merttens leads a conversation with four senior experts on the future of the market and the forces that could reshape it.

Featuring:

Together, they examine how emerging technologies, shifting client expectations and economic realities are pushing the market to rethink long-held assumptions about distribution, underwriting and talent.

In this conversation, the panel explores:

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Robin Merttens on LinkedIn. 

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 369 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

In this milestone edition of Partners Chat, Robin and Matthew sit down for their first episode since InsTech's transition to new ownership. With nearly 11 years of leadership behind them, they reflect candidly on founding and growing the business, navigating a sales process and what lies ahead under Datos Insights.

Listeners will get rare insights into what it actually takes to sell a company: what they learned, what caught them off guard and how it’s changed their understanding of fundraising and Private Equity partnerships. This episode offers honest takeaways for any founders or leaders thinking ahead to their own exit.

Robin and Matthew also tackle one of the most polarising trends in insurance tech today: Agentic AI. Is it a game-changer or just another label? They unpack how it's being adopted (quietly or loudly) across insurers, and why some businesses are embracing it at full throttle while others remain unconvinced.

They also share what they’ve seen in the climate and catastrophe modelling space, where collaboration, innovation and data openness continue to drive real value and how this might foreshadow the future of AI in insurance.

Key themes discussed include:

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Robin Merttens or Matthew Grant on LinkedIn.

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 365 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.

If you want a masterclass in how to build a business, sell it well and stay hungry for the next idea, listen to Bob Frady.

In this episode, Matthew Grant catches up with Bob, CEO and Co-founder of PropertyLens and former CEO and founder of Hazard Hub, to hear what he’s learned across three startups, why he’s building again post-exit and how he’s turning deep domain expertise into tools that actually help people.

From fire hydrants to flood risk, Bob has spent years translating messy, hyperlocal data into decisions insurers and now homebuyers can use. But this conversation goes far beyond data: it's about strategy, equity, product‑market fit and the value of knowing when to walk away from the wrong deal.

In this episode Bob shares:

This one’s for founders, data practitioners and anyone who enjoys a candid, experience-rich look at what it takes to build a business that lasts.

If you like what you’re hearing, please leave us a review on whichever platform you use or contact Bob Frady or Matthew Grant on LinkedIn.

Sign up to the InsTech newsletter for a fresh view on the world every Wednesday morning.

Continuing Professional Development

This InsTech Podcast Episode is accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII). By listening, you can claim up to 0.5 hours towards your CPD scheme.

By the end of this podcast, you should be able to meet the following Learning Objectives:

If your organisation is a member of InsTech and you would like to receive a quarterly summary of the CPD hours you have earned, visit the Episode 367 page of the InsTech website or email [email protected] to let us know you have listened to this podcast.

To help us measure the impact of the learning, we would be grateful if you would take a minute to complete a quick feedback survey.