Mosaic, a Bermuda-based global speciality insurer, will begin underwriting cyber insurance globally next month, through teams based in Chicago and London.

Founded by Mitch Blaser, Mosaic launched operations in Bermuda, London, the United States and Asia, along with a newly formed Lloyd’s syndicate, last month.

A spokesman for the company said Mosaic’s cybersecurity and privacy coverage is designed to protect diverse industry types and focus on supporting insureds’ ability to not only proactively prevent an attack, but also respond and minimise damage in the aftermath.

The company plans to capitalise on strong relationships with US and international retail brokers and clients and leverage its underwriters’ market leadership – including regular collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security, and National Institute of Standards & Technology in the US, the UK National Cyber Security Centre, and the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity, to shape industry best practices.

Mosaic’s experienced cybersecurity team in the US and UK includes: Yosha DeLong, senior vice-president and, head of cyber underwriting. She has more than 24 years’ experience in managing liability, professional and cyber lines. Based in Chicago, she is responsible for development and oversight of Mosaic’s cybersecurity product globally. Previously, she was technical director of cyber and professional lines at Zurich North America, where she coordinated cyber-risk coverage across all lines of business and oversaw professional liability lines. She held prior roles at Gemini Risk, Ironshore Insurance, and Axis Capital.

Also on the team is James Tuplin, SVP, head of international cyber underwriting. He has more than 18 years of experience underwriting international commercial risk, with a focus on the cyber and tech, media and telecom sector. Based in London, he was previously head of cyber and TMT for Axa XL’s international financial lines division and has also held cyber related roles at QBE, Allianz Insurance, and Zurich. At Mosaic, he is developing the international cyber portfolio, starting in London and seeking opportunities in Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East.

Brian Dusek, vice-president, head of cyber underwriting (US), has more than 20 years of experience as a lawyer, monitoring counsel, claims and insurance professional. Based in Chicago he will be responsible for growing Mosaic’s cyber portfolio through North America. He was previously cyber product manager at Zurich North America. Before that, he was a practicing insurance coverage lawyer at McCullough, Campbell & Lane LLP, where he represented insurers worldwide with a focus on claims relating to professional liability and cyber.

“By establishing an experienced, market-leading team with proven track records and reputation, our cyber-risk unit will build an influential global franchise in this very complex class,” said Mr Blaser, Mosaic chief executive officer. “Heightened threats from cyber warfare, data breaches, ransomware and other attacks on systems and software are well recognised and the danger of disruption to industries and economies is significant. We believe this line of business will become increasingly relevant.”

Mosaic offers a broad range of cyber coverages designed to protect insureds from emerging threats facing companies and mitigate incident costs, ranging from crisis services and legal defence to business interruption and data recovery. Primary and excess coverage will focus on middle-market businesses in a variety of industries.

With an ability to lead primary business in both the US and London markets, Mosaic will offer maximum capacity of $10 million for any one risk in North America and up to £10 million internationally.

“Protection for digital assets is becoming ever more critical as new threats emerge daily,” said Ms DeLong, who moderated an expert panel on cyber warfare in a NetDiligence webinar series this week. “We look forward to building our cyber portfolio and encouraging deeper understanding and preparation against these incidents and exposures to help industries prioritise a larger cybersecurity culture.”