The 50-year-old has three decades of experience in insurance and is the current group CEO of reinsurer Canopius.
Previously, she spent four years with Zurich Insurance, including a period as global chief underwriting officer, and was Group CEO of Swiss reinsurer Converium. Beale has also worked for Prudential and GE Insurance Solutions.
“Lloyd’s is already an international leader, but this unique market has an extraordinary opportunity to increase its footprint and to cement its position as the global hub for specialist insurance and reinsurance,” she said.
Lloyd's chairman John Nelson said Beale’s 30 years of experience in the insurance industry, including in underwriting and operational roles, made her an ideal candidate for chief executive.
Lloyd’s of London is a group of 80 insurance syndicates that have a reputation for underwriting just about everything, including Keith Richards’ fingers and a grain of rice with a portrait of the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh engraved on it.
