Insurance and reinsurance giant XL yesterday launched a new venture capital firm aimed at investing in financial technology.

XL Innovate, which will be based in California, will be headed by Tom Hutton, the founder and CEO of New Energy Risk Inc, a data analytics and consulting firm in renewable energy and also a former XL director.

The new fund will take equity positions in companies that provide new market opportunities for XL around the world and work to forge partnerships outside of traditional underwriting in a bid to capitalise on uninsured risks.

Mr Hutton said: “I am thrilled to be partnering with the XL team at a time of both industry transition and great momentum at the company.”

He added that the proposed merger of XL with Catlin Group promised an even stronger company as a result.

Mr Hutton said: “We look forward to being a unique partner to entrepreneurs with the vision and ambition to address new risks with new solutions, unconstrained by geography, scale, or traditional thinking.”

Mr Hutton will be backed by an investment team experienced in identifying and promoting innovations in financial technology and insurance, overseen by a board of directors that will include Sara Street, the current XL chief investment officer.

XL CEO Mike McGavick said: “We are very excited to launch this new initiative, which will extend XL’s capabilities in existing markets and give us new opportunities to address some of the most pressing and complex risk problems in the global economy.

“XL Innovate is an important step as we continue to drive our focus on innovation forward and secure the relevance of XL and the industry well into the future.

“We’re particularly pleased to have Tom Hutton and his strong track record of insurance innovation partnering with the XL team.”