The Political Risk Podcast

Hosted by David Benyon

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Nov 2026

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About the show

Geopolitics, insured. An independent podcast, focused on geopolitics and insurance markets, serving risk professionals, leaders and decision makers in specialty insurance and beyond. Join journalist and host David Benyon for an exclusive guest list mixing senior brokers and underwriters from the world of specialty insurance with wider geopolitical expertise from authors, academics, analysts and diplomats.

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November 10, 2026Episode 8035 min

Piracy is Back: Why the Somali Threat Never Went Away

Alexander Beaton, practice leader for kidnap, war and piracy at CFC, discusses the return of Somali piracy and why the threat never really disappeared. The episode explores how regional instability, reduced deterrence and stretched naval resources have created space for piracy to re-emerge in the Gulf of Aden. He also examines what recent hijackings reveal about pirate capabilities, how the Somali model differs from piracy elsewhere, and whether marine insurance should rethink its response to piracy, maritime insecurity and hybrid warfare.

November 3, 202635 min

Crisis Management Beyond Silos: Cyber, PVT and CPRI

Dan Trueman, CEO of Nostos, joins this bonus episode to discuss why the traditional boundaries between cyber, political violence and other crisis risks are becoming increasingly artificial. The episode explores how malicious actors can move between cyber attack, sabotage and physical violence, while insurance products remain divided into separate silos. Trueman also explains how a multi-class approach to crisis management, combined with better data, technology and claims response, could change the way insurers protect clients against an increasingly interconnected threat landscape. That's why it's the perfect crossover between this podcast and its new sister show, The Cyber Insurance Podcast.

October 15, 2026Episode 7933 min

Africa's Political Risk Gap: Perception, Reality and Investment

Benjamin Mugisha, chief underwriting officer at ATIDI argues that while political, sovereign and credit risks are real, investor perceptions and pricing can sometimes run ahead of underlying experience. He explains how political risk insurance and reinsurance can help turn those risks into investable opportunities and mobilise private capital. The episode also explores debt sustainability, financing for infrastructure and renewable energy projects, Africa’s changing financial architecture, and how geopolitical disruption is reshaping trade, investment and the continent’s push for greater economic self-sufficiency.

October 8, 202644 min

Cyber's Next Frontier: Closing the SME Protection Gap

Introducing The Cyber Insurance Podcast. Scott Bailey, head of global cyber underwriting at CFC, discusses why SMEs could represent the biggest growth opportunity for the cyber market. With cyber insurance take-up still much lower among smaller businesses than large corporates, Bailey explores what insurers and brokers need to do to close the protection gap and better communicate the value of cover. The episode also looks at ransomware, softer market conditions, and CFC’s bold move to introduce clearer affirmative AI protection as businesses increasingly adopt AI tools and new risks emerge. Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0347MrIllTUQ9N56HjgE25 Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cyber-insurance-podcast/id6805386204 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@CyberInsurancePod Web https://www.cyberinsurancepodcast.com/

October 1, 2026Episode 7835 min

The Terrorism Diversifier: Rethinking Political Violence Insurance

Mike O’Connor, co-founder and chief commercial officer at Crux Underwriting, joins for a conversation that is at turns insightful, deeply personal, strategic and technology focused. He explores why terrorism can act as a diversifier within a wider political violence portfolio, what that means for optimising capital and reinsurance, and how Crux, as an MGA in the political violence and terrorism insurance business, is using technology to change the way terrorism risks are distributed and underwritten. O’Connor also looks at how far specialty insurance can realistically be automated, and where Crux plans to take its innovative model next.

September 17, 2026Episode 7728 min

The Reinsurance Paradox: Rising Risk, Falling Prices

David Flandro, head of industry analysis and strategic advisory at Howden Re, discusses a growing reinsurance paradox: global risk is rising, but prices are falling. The episode was recorded as re/insurance executives headed to Monte Carlo for RVS 2026. The conversation explores what geopolitical instability, higher interest rates and the cost of capital mean for the market, whether Middle East losses could prove market-changing, and what combination of shocks it might take to turn the reinsurance cycle. Flandro also explains why geopolitics is becoming increasingly important to the way insurers and reinsurers analyse risk. And you can find Howden Re's "Breaking the glass" report, which we discuss in this episode, right here: https://www.howdenre.com/news-insights/howden-re-releases-breaking-glass

September 7, 2026Episode 7628 min

The Political Violence Reset: Can the Market Stay Sustainable?

Chris Jarvis, group chief underwriting officer at IGI, discusses the reset taking place in political violence insurance. With geopolitical instability and conflict in the Middle East testing underwriting assumptions, Jarvis explains how IGI is adjusting pricing, line sizes, aggregation and capacity across its global portfolio. The discussion explores whether affordability is creating gaps in political violence cover, why IGI sees greater value in some areas of treaty reinsurance than the direct market, and whether political violence insurance can deliver sustainable returns.

August 31, 2026Episode 7524 min

"Peace Through Strength": Has Israel Won Its Wars?

Almost three years on from the October 7 terrorist attacks, Israel has fought across multiple fronts, from Gaza and Lebanon to direct confrontation with Iran. Amiad Cohen, CEO of The Herut Center, argues that Israel has substantially reduced the military threats surrounding it, outperforming pre-war expectations through a strategy he calls “peace through strength”. He discusses whether Israel’s wars are really over, the continuing threat from Iran and tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, the security outlook in Gaza and Lebanon, relations with the US and Europe, and what the changing geopolitical landscape means for businesses and insurers.

July 29, 2026Episode 7426 min

Financing Africa: Banks, Insurers and the New Geopolitics of Capital

Sub-Saharan Africa’s government financing landscape has been transformed by credit markets, changing geopolitics, and new sources of capital. This special episode, produced in association with Mosaic Insurance, features Katharine Villers, political risk underwriter and head of commercial finance at Mosaic, and Nick James, director, structured finance at ICBC Standard Bank. They explore how the continent’s financing system has evolved, the changing geopolitics of capital, and the role that banks and insurers are playing in supporting investment and development.

July 23, 2026Episode 7329 min

From Events to Insights: Learning from PVT and SRCC events; with Verisk live at Lloyd’s

How can political violence and terrorism insurers turn recent events into better underwriting insights? Recorded live at Lloyd’s during Verisk’s “Insuring Political Violence, SRCC, and Terrorism Forum”, this special episode brings together Alex Baker of Chaucer, Guy Burrows of Inigo and Torbjorn Soltvedt of Verisk Maplecroft. The panel explores the underwriting lessons emerging from recent geopolitical events, including the 2026 Iran war, changing targeting patterns and the sparks that can trigger strikes, riots and civil commotion. The discussion also examines data quality, predictive modelling, portfolio resilience, hybrid conflict, claims information and the tools underwriters need to navigate an increasingly complex political violence landscape.