Markel International has announced plans to merge its professional and financial risks division with its recently expanded cyber team.

Markel International’s managing director of wholesale, Andrew McMellin, said that when his company started writing cyber business almost a decade ago, clients were facing a very different and significantly less complex risk landscape than the one they face today.

“Cyber risks have gained prominence and are now intertwined with other business lines, especially those that sit under our PFR division,” he said. “When we were looking at how we can keep our business relevant and tailored for our clients, we saw many benefits in the merging of the two divisions.”

He said it will mean their cyber underwriters will be able to align themselves more closely with their PFR teams.

“This will allow them to plan and innovate collaboratively, and bring about a more holistic approach to our cyber offering, to the benefit of our broking partners and end clients,” he said.

The merger is part of the wholesale business’s efforts to simplify the trading experience for its broking partners and make its product offerings to insureds more innovative, comprehensive and as relevant as possible.

A number of people have been hired or promoted within the company to grow the cyber team.

David Sawyer, who joined the firm in 2015, will become divisional managing director of PFR and Cyber.

Chris Burgess will continue to lead the London-based cyber team and will now report to Mr Sawyer, with a role that will see an increased focus on developing growth potential for the business line.

Mr Sawyer said: “We have highly skilled and well-respected cyber underwriters and I look forward to working with Chris and the rest of the team as we continue to expand our combined offering for our brokers and clients.”