Talbir Bains tells the Voice of Insurance that delivering profit to carriers remains sole objective for Volante Global

Volante Global CEO Talbir Bains revealed Volante could hit $500m in annual gross written premium by 2023 in a recent interview for Mark Geoghegan’s The Voice of Insurance podcast.

That figure is based on organic growth from Volante’s 18 underwriting teams, which wrote close to $200m between them in 2020. However, Talbir reminded listeners Volante’s objective has always been bottom line profitability over top line growth.

Volante’s business model is predicated on delivering a profit for carriers, with revenues 100% dependent on underwriters meeting COR targets over the full length of binders – typically a period of five years – rather than annually, Talbir explained.

This revolutionises the MGA model by fully aligning the success of Volante and its carrier panel. In fact, Volante’s underwriters sees themselves as divisions of their carriers, Talbir said.

With the MGA industry having delivered disappointing results for the last few years, many carriers are revisiting the basis on which they delegate authority. They now seek alignment, transparency and long-term sustainability – all issues addressed under Volante’s approach.

Talbir said he believes the recent shake-out of the MGA market is just the start as the industry seeks to rectify the legacy issues following a near two-decade-long soft market.

While rising rates go some way to addressing pricing inadequacy, the market is a long way from writing truly sustainable business, which is why underwriting discipline and cutting the expense base remains crucially important, Talbir said.

Asked whether the hardening insurance means Volante will look to expand into new markets, Talbir said the firm’s business model has always been built on the quality of its underwriting teams rather than seeking opportunities in specific territories and insurance classes.

While increased scale will play an important role in smoothing volatility going forward, generating profit for sponsors through skill, discipline and differentiation remains Volante’s priority.

In a wide-ranging interview, Talbir went on to discuss a variety of topics, from plans to improve pre-bind technology to how John Neal and others have inspired him in his career in insurance.

Click here to listen to the full interview.