Lloyd's of London announced that Albert BENCHIMOL and Victoria CARTER have been appointed respectively External member and Working member of the Lloyd's Council with effect from 1 February 2019. Michael WATSON, currently on the council, has been re-elected as External member.

Albert BENCHIMOL is currently President and Chief Executive Officer of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, a position he has held since 2012. He joined the company in 2011 as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. He formerly served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of PartnerRe Ltd. for a 10-year period, and was also CEO of Partner Re Ltd.'s Capital Markets Group business unit from 2007-2010. Albert BENCHIMOL spent several years working for Reliance Group Holdings and for the Bank of Montreal in both New York and Toronto. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Physiology and Immunology from McGill University in Montreal, and earned a Master's in Business Administration at the same university. Albert BENCHIMOL is Chairman of the Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers Association, and a member of the Insurance Development Fund Steering Committee.

Victoria CARTER has worked for the Lloyd's market for 38 years, starting her career in medicine then moving to Reinsurance Broking in 1980. She joined Guy Carpenter in 2010 as Vice Chairman of International Operations and in 2016 became Vice Chairman of Global Strategic Advisory. She also holds positions on the company's executive committee and board. Prior to that, she was Chairman of UK and Europe at Towers Watson. In 1992, she founded Dunn & Carter Ltd, becoming the first female founder of a Lloyd's broking house. She is also the founder and driver of the Marsh & McLennan Your Professionals Initiative, which initiated a market-wide networking and educational platform. Victoria CARTER is a Trustee of the Lloyd's Charities Trust and a Board member of the Lloyd's Community Programme. She is also on the Court of the Worshipful Company of Insurers.

Michael WATSON is Executive Chairman of Canopius AG, a private equity backed global specialty re(insurance) business with its principal operations at Lloyd's. He led the original management buyout of Canopius in 2003 and again in 2018. He has over 40 years' experience in commercial and investment banking, trade finance, stock broking, life and non-life insurance, gained in London, Bermuda and New York. He is a Chartered Accountant and serves on the Board of the Lloyd's Market Association and Weston Insurance Holdings Corporation.