BellTower Partners Makes Minority Investment in Ascot

NEW YORK, NY – September 17, 2024 – Ascot Group Limited, the Bermuda-based global specialty insurance company (“Ascot” or “the company”), today announced that Kewsong Lee, the Founder and CEO of BellTower Partners (“BellTower”), will be appointed Chairman of the Ascot Board of Directors. Mr. Lee will succeed Neill Currie, Ascot’s Executive Chairman, who will assume the role of Independent Director.

Mr. Lee possesses more than three decades of strategic and organizational experience cultivated from years of leading a diverse array of large, complex global organizations.

Most recently, Mr. Lee founded BellTower, a private holding company that accesses and invests permanent capital in private companies. His experience in the insurance industry began with his active involvement and board memberships at RenaissanceRe Holdings and Arch Capital, on whose board he served as lead director. While serving as Chief Executive Officer of The Carlyle Group from 2018 through 2022, Mr. Lee initiated and oversaw the firm’s successful strategy to acquire and expand Fortitude Re.  

In connection with Mr. Lee’s appointment, BellTower is making a minority investment in Ascot to help expand the company’s resources and support its strategic growth plans. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (“CPP Investments”), a global investment management organization that manages the assets of the Canada Pension Plan, will continue to maintain the significant majority ownership position in Ascot following the close of the transaction.

Jonathan Zaffino, Group President and Chief Executive Officer of Ascot, said, “On behalf of the Board of Directors, I’d like to welcome Kew to the Ascot Board. Kew’s appointment as Chairman complements the existing skillsets represented on our Board, and we look forward to benefitting from his additional guidance as a proven leader with a track record of success in the financial and insurance industry. As Ascot continues to scale its global platform and expand its ecosystem of talented underwriters, we are confident that Kew’s contributions and unique skills will be highly accretive to Ascot as we continue on the company’s growth trajectory.”

Sam Blaichman, Managing Director, CPP Investments and Ascot Board Director, said, “We look forward to working with Kew and BellTower in this next chapter in Ascot’s growth journey, as the management team continues to develop solutions to help clients navigate today’s challenging risk landscape. I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Neill for his many valuable contributions as Executive Chairman over many years.”

Mr. Lee said, “As a global participant in the insurance and reinsurance industries, Ascot is consistently achieving strong results, and I look forward to working with Jonathan and his talented team to continue scaling the business as we focus on long-term, sustainable growth and return on capital. BellTower believes there is tremendous opportunity ahead for Ascot, and I am excited to partner with CPP Investments and management to help drive significant value creation.”

“Since Ascot’s founding in 2001, the company has made significant progress towards achieving its mission of offering a wide range of specialty insurance products responsibly and thoughtfully,” said Mr. Currie. “On a personal note, having known Kew for over 30 years, since the formation of RenaissanceRe in 1993, I am certain that having an executive of his caliber join the Board will position the business for continued success as we build on the strong momentum that our talented management team has set in motion.”

About Kewsong Lee

Kewsong Lee is the founder and CEO of BellTower Partners, a private holding company formed in 2023 that accesses and invests permanent capital to acquire significant and influential ownership positions in private companies. Prior to BellTower, Mr. Lee served as the Chief Executive Officer of The Carlyle Group and was on the Board of Directors from 2018 to 2022, having initially joined as Deputy Chief Investment Officer for Private Equity in 2013. Before Carlyle, Mr. Lee was at Warburg Pincus for 21 years, where he was a Partner and member of the Executive Management Group.

Mr. Lee is currently the Chair of Lincoln Center Theater, Director of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and Vice Chair for the Partnership for New York City. He also is a strategic advisor for FCLT Global. Mr. Lee has extensive public and private corporate board experience, having served as a director of companies such as TransDigm, Neiman Marcus and Aramark. With respect to the insurance industry, while at Warburg Pincus, Mr. Lee drove significant investments such as RenaissanceRe Holdings and Arch Capital, on whose boards he served. In addition, during his tenure at Carlyle, Mr. Lee spearheaded the firm’s successful strategy to acquire and expand Fortitude Re.

Mr. Lee earned his AB in applied mathematics in economics at Harvard College and his MBA from Harvard Business School.

About Ascot Group

Ascot Group is a global specialty insurance and reinsurance group with a record of underwriting excellence and superior claims service. Founded in 2001, Ascot provides a broad range of customized property and casualty products to customers worldwide through its Lloyd’s, Bermuda and US market platforms.

Ascot Group is majority owned by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (“CPP Investments”), a global investment management organization that manages the assets of the Canada Pension Plan (“CPP”) in the best interest of the more than 22 million contributors and beneficiaries of the CPP. CPP Investments is the largest pension plan fund in Canada, totaling C$646 billion in net assets. CPP Investments is rated ‘AAA’ by S&P and Moody’s. For more information on Ascot, please visit www.ascotgroup.com.

About BellTower Partners

BellTower Partners is a private holding company that accesses and invests permanent capital to acquire significant and influential ownership positions in private businesses. BellTower focuses on partnering with management teams in well-positioned companies that it can actively shape and build to create significant value over the long-term. For more information, please visit www.belltowerpartners.com.

Legal Advisors

Ascot was advised by Debevoise & Plimpton and BellTower was advised by McDermott Will & Emery and Willkie Farr & Gallagher.

Media

Ascot Group

Philippa Ushio
Prosek Partners
pushio@prosek.com
pro-ascot@prosek.com

BellTower Partners

Charles V. Zehren
Managing Director
RUBENSTEIN
czehren@rubenstein.com

212-843-8590

CPP Investments

Steve McCool
Managing Director, Global Corporate Communications, CPP Investments
smccool@cppib.com

+44 20 3947 3002