Headquarters:

New York, NY

Year founded:

1998

Number of employees:

6,000

Phone:

212 220 7120

Email:

ahansen@suttonplanning.ca

Website:

amtrustfinancial.com

LinkedIn:

linkedin.com/company/amtrust-financial-services-inc

“We prioritise embracing cutting-edge technologies, creative problem solving and continuous improvement to enhance our premium funding solutions and provide exceptional value to our clients”

Brett Bastow, IQumulate Premium FundinG

Ariel Gorelik

EVP, COO/Chief Claims Officer

Brent Bland

SVP, Head of WC Claims 

Karen Stuttman

SVP, Head of Liability Claims

Leadership

Andrea Hansen, president of Sutton Benefits & Pension, is a visionary community leader. She helps employers improve benefits and pension programs, ensuring the well-being of their teams and families. Andrea’s leadership has earned her prestigious awards like the WESK Celebration of Achievement and the Kent Smith-Windsor Leadership Award. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan, a Group Benefits Associate designation, and is a Certified Financial Planner®. Andrea also earned the Total Rewards Certificate from IFEBP and additional certifications, including the Workplace Mental Health Leadership™ certificate from Queen’s University and the 4 Seasons of Reconciliation certificate from First Nations University of Canada.

President

Andrea Hansen, B Comm., CFP®, GBA

Tim Hansen is a distinguished speaker, financial educator, author, and pension advisor featured on CTV, CBC, Business View, and Thrive magazines. He delivers educational presentations for organizations like Advocis and Family Enterprise Exchange. Tim contributed to the Amazon #1 bestseller Build Wealth Like a Shark. He collaborates with businesses to develop comprehensive pension plans that benefit employees and their families. With over 25 years of experience and a specialization in group retirement savings, he helps successful families and business owners preserve, protect, and pass on their wealth. He serves on the Saskatoon Prairieland Park Board and mentors young entrepreneurs.

Partner, Pension Advisor

Tim Hansen, B.Comm., CFP®, CEA

Jay Stark is a renowned financial educator, author, speaker, and retirement planner with a focus on philanthropy. Featured on CTV Saskatoon, The Star Phoenix, and Thrive magazine, Jay authored The 7 Mistakes Canadians Make When Giving to Charities. As a partner and wealth advisor at Sutton Wealth Planning, he has been advising clients on reducing income and estate taxes for over 25 years. Jay co-created the Abundant Retirement Process™ to help people achieve their potential and create lasting legacies. He received the 2023 Community Leadership Award and serves on the Saskatoon Community Foundation Board.

Partner, Wealth Advisor

Jay Stark, B. Comm.,CFP®, MFA-P

BRETT BASTOW, IQUMULATE PREMIUM FUNDINGs

Leadership

Nate Stanton

VP, Head of Property Claims 

Stuart Sutton is a respected financial educator, speaker, and Certified Financial Planner, featured in The Business Advisor, Thrive, and Living55 Plus magazines. He authored 5 Serious Barriers to Your Retirement Plans and co-authored Is Now the Opportune Time to Upgrade Your Lifestyle (And Your Financial Advisor). As a second-generation owner at Sutton, Stuart has been helping families and individuals preserve and pass on their wealth for over 25 years. He co-created the Abundant Retirement Process™ and is known for his meticulous approach to wealth planning. Stuart holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan.

Partner, Wealth Advisor

Stuart Sutton, B.Comm., CFP®

Andrew Miller

VP, Head of Complex Liability Claims 

Alexander Nordang is a principal in CDI Lawyers’ litigation and dispute resolution team, bringing over 12 years of experience in complex, multijurisdictional construction disputes. He has acted for international contractors, state-owned enterprises, and government entities on matters valued up to $1 billion, involving projects across Australia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. In addition to his dispute resolution expertise, Nordang provides strategic advice during pre-contracting and contract administration phases, helping clients build strong contractual foundations. His in-depth understanding of technical construction issues enables him to identify and manage risks early – covering everything from variation claims to site-based correspondence.

Principal

Alexander Nordang

Stevens & Associates Lawyers is a leading and trusted employment law firm based in Sydney known for delivering high-quality legal expertise in the area of employment law and industrial relations across Australia, alongside a proven track record of effectively and swiftly resolving a variety of workplace law issues. In the past year, the firm’s growth has been notable. It has: • experienced a 213% growth in the number of client matters, increasing from 149 client matters in the 2022 financial year to 390 client matters in the 2023 financial year • improved its online visibility, leading to over 50 online enquiries each month and a conversion rate of client leads of up to 40% • significantly expanded the breadth and type of matters that it advises on day to day, which has increased the firm’s skillsets, diversity and resilience • expanded its community outreach by collaborating with local Sydney venues for client seminars and continuing active participation in a Sydney small/family business group Stevens & Associates Lawyers has adapted to digital trends by implementing an effective strategy with SEO and web design, resulting in a structural shift that has seen increased representation of employees where the firm previously mainly advised employers. The firm’s recognition as a “Fast Firm” attests to its momentum in the employment law space.

“IQumulate is on a technology journey, and we’re just getting started”

Wayne Tower, IQumulate Premium Funding

Holly Spurlock

VP, Head of Cyber and PL Claims 

Tina Brletich

VP, Managed Care 

Nicholas Webber

VP, WC Litigation 

Pam Chhabra

Manager – Residential Strata

Steve Tchepak became the national underwriting manager at CHU in June 2019. He has over 13 years of experience in strata management and strata insurance. He has held various positions, including commercial underwriter, team leader and NSW and ACT branch manager.

National Underwriting Manager

Steve Tchepak

Thierry Pascal has over 13 years of experience in business and corporate banking in various financial/credit analytical and relationship management roles with the NAB and CBA. After a career break to undertake postgraduate studies, he joined GE Capital as a senior risk analyst in premium funding in 2010. Following the divestment of the premium funding business to the Macquarie Group in 2015, he joined Macquarie Premium Funding and was promoted to credit risk manager, where he led the credit underwriting team. Following the re-branding to IQumulate Premium Funding, Pascal was recently promoted to head of credit and legal, a role that sees him manage the credit underwriting team as well as oversee IQumulate’s in-house legal function. Pascal holds undergraduate and postgraduate tertiary qualifications in accounting and law.

Head of Credit and Legal

Thierry Pascal

Cemal Akgul sees the head of risk and collections role as pivotal in guiding and influencing business decisions. He has more than 15 years of experience across financial and government services, most recently with the NDIS, where he was the leading consultant driving the Risk Management process’ nationwide. Prior to that, he served various roles at BMW Finance across the United States, Hong Kong, Germany and Australia. During Akgul’s tenure at BMW Finance, he predominately worked in risk management, guiding the organisation through seismic changes between 2016 and 2018. In his time prior, he was based out of New York, leading BMW Finance’s American subsidiary's market risk and data analytics teams between 2011 and 2016. Akgul values a balanced approach to business, encourages a positive work culture and is passionate about teaching and guiding the business and individuals at IQumulate.

Head of Risk and Collections

Cemal Akgul

Stephen McMillan first entered the financial services Industry when he joined GE Capital as a finance analyst in 2008, from which he progressed through roles working both onshore and offshore. From there, he moved into Pacific Premium Funding as a financial planning and analysis leader in 2012 and was a key resource in the evolution of the business, first with the successful sale to Macquarie Pacific Funding and then the following progression into IQumulate Premium Funding, where he is now the commercial manager. As commercial manager, McMillan leads a team that is responsible for commercial analysis and business support, identifying and reporting improvement initiatives, and the securitization and treasury functions of the business.

Commercial Manager

Stephen McMillan

One culmination of these efforts has been the real-world, needs-based IQEdge solution. A one-stop online quoting tool designed for both the Australian and New Zealand markets, IQEdge delivers quotes in under 60 seconds. Plus, the solution offers quote comparison and quote versioning capabilities, enabling users to review vital historical and financial data in a single page view. IQEdge can streamline and automate application processing, underwriting document verification and payment collection, cutting the need for manual labour and minimising processing errors. A digital “self-service” platform, IQEdge, reduces the need for customer and administrative support. Meanwhile, borrowers can access their accounts, make payments and manage their policies independently and through sales and support teams, which are always available for further assistance. “We’ve created a quality platform that simplifies the quoting process yet amplifies the customer experience,” says Gordon. “It’s a real game changer.” IQumulate offers an online digital quoting tool to clients. The best-in-market solution enables IQumulate to tailor funding offerings to brokers that align with their prefered distribution channel.

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What does IQumulate have in mind for the future? “IQumulate is on a technology journey, and we’re just getting started,” says Wayne Tower, CEO. “Through continuous engagement with our clients, partners, marketplace and industry, we will listen to the needs as they arise and position our business to be agile and respond to changes as they occur. “Faster decision-making innovations such as AI-powered decision support systems can expedite the underwriting and approval process, leading to quicker responses to clients. This can improve client satisfaction and potentially attract more business, with the potential to allow IQumulate to capture a larger market share, whilst continuing to deliver service excellence to clients.” “As forward-thinkers with a digital and ‘do it better’ mindset, we collectively and proactively look to learn and improve on our customer experience for our clients, paving the way for successful business outcomes for our clients and our business in the coming years ahead. “We’re excited for the future and look forward to what’s on the horizon.”

What does IQumulate have in mind for the future? “IQumulate is on a technology journey, and we’re just getting started,” says Wayne Tower, CEO. “Through continuous engagement with our clients, partners, marketplace and industry, we will listen to the needs as they arise and position our business to be agile and respond to changes as they occur. “Faster decision-making innovations such as AI-powered decision support systems can expedite the underwriting and approval process, leading to quicker responses to clients. This can improve client satisfaction and potentially attract more business, creating a competitive advantage with the potential to allow IQumulate to command premium pricing or capture a larger market share. “As forward-thinkers with a digital and ‘do it better’ mindset, we collectively and proactively look to learn and improve on our customer experience for our clients, paving the way for successful business outcomes for our clients and our business in the coming years ahead. “We’re excited for the future and look forward to what’s on the horizon.”

Adam Basaldella

Manager – Claims

Product Manager

Claire Watson

Commercial Manager

Stephen McMillan

Claire Watson

Product Manager

Claire Watson

Product Manager

Claire Watson

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Ivan Verescuk

Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director

Shaun O’Brien

Head of Underwriting

Emily Walker

Head of Strata and Development

Rex Oakman

Head of Operations and Risk

Sandy Newton

Head of Underwriting

Andrew Mitchell

Manager – NSW

Michael Prokopis

Manager – Southern Region

Pam Chhabra

Manager – Residential Strata

Jeffrey Valdivia

Manager – Commercial Strata

Adam Basaldella

Manager – Claims

AmTrust Financial Services is a niche specialty property and casualty insurance company with more than 6,000 employees worldwide. It has grown to become an industry-leading insurance provider, focusing on small business insurance solutions including workers’ compensation, business owners’ policy, package, cyber, and employment practices liability insurance. AmTrust is the third largest writer of workers’ compensation insurance in the United States. It is also a top warranty writer in the US and helps international businesses manage a number of risks such as medical malpractice, professional indemnity, property, legal, and health. AmTrust currently has a financial strength rating of “A-” (excellent) with a stable outlook and a financial size of “XV” by AM Best.

IQumulate invests in education and people, which are vital to attracting new business and talent to the company. “We have long tenures for several of our key staff, including some in leadership positions, and this sound working knowledge of our business, practices and industry provides great insights and a wealth of experience to offer our clients,” says Bastow. “Our new head of sales, Graeme Gordon, formerly manager for New Zealand, joins us in Australia to drive our sales strategy and lead our team to successful outcomes for our clients and our business. We look forward to great things ahead with Graeme as he continues to be active and present in the New Zealand market as well as building sound working relationships and new connections in Australia.” Clients can also expect a lot from working with IQumulate. “Through active engagement with our trusted broker network, IQumulate provides relevant information, education and training content,” says Graeme Gordon, head of sales. “Our clients can expect IQumulate to support their business in several ways, providing an understanding of what premium funding solutions are available and how IQumulate can spread the cost of insurance and help borrowers get the right level of insurance cover to free up their cash flow for other expenses or business growth opportunities. Premium funding is often considered a tool for those who simply cannot afford to pay their premiums in full. While this is certainly a significant driver for many, it is also successfully used by profitable companies who use premium funding to manage their cash flows more wisely or better manage their liquidity.”