QBE has appointed Jamie Thompson as global director of data centres, a newly created position aimed at developing an integrated insurance offering for the rapidly expanding sector, the insurer announced on Tuesday.
Based in London, Thompson will bring together underwriting, risk engineering, claims and distribution capabilities to build a globally consistent proposition for data centre operators and associated risks, the insurer said.
Thompson previously served as director of financial lines for QBE’s international markets division and has been with the insurer for more than 20 years. His experience also includes a stint as director of QBE Canada, alongside leadership roles in underwriting and portfolio management.
QBE said the appointment reflects the growing importance of data centres as demand for cloud services and artificial intelligence continues to increase. The insurer cited forecasts showing that global data centre capacity will double between 2026 and 2030.
According to an Allianz Commercial report, Asia Pacific data centre capacity outside China is expected to grow from around 9GW today to more than 28GW by 2030, with Malaysia set to expand more than tenfold. Globally, annual data centre investment is projected to rise from around US$500bn in 2024 to more than US$1 trillion as early as 2027.
“The data centre sector is rapidly growing and evolving with the advent of AI,” said Cécile Fresneau, Managing Director of QBE’s insurance division. “Sheer size and scale, power and redundancy requirements, choice of locations around the world mean that the sector increasingly needs adapted solutions backed by deep expertise and global reach.”
Thompson added that coverage gaps are emerging and “the complex and interconnected risks associated with data centres will need sophisticated solutions.”
The insurer recently reported a combined operating ratio of 92.8% for H1 2026, maintaining underwriting profitability despite higher claims and operating costs. Claims inflation in accident & health portfolios and several large loss events contributed to a rise in the ex-catastrophe claims ratio to 61.8% from 61.5% a year earlier.
QBE’s move adds to the recent push by global brokers towards specialised data centre divisions. In July, Lockton launched a global data centres & digital infrastructure practice, while Aon increased the capacity of its data centre lifecycle insurance programme to US$5bn.
