Latest news with #Arbella
Boston Globe
30-05-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
John Donohue steps down from CEO role at Arbella
Today, Donohue estimates Arbella collects about $1.2 billion in premiums each year, across four New England states, compared with $200 million at its outset. Advertisement While Donohue chaired the Arbella board since the company's inception, he didn't step in as chief executive until 2001, taking over for Richard Brewer . Donohue says he's looking forward to focusing more on Arbella's foundation, which doles out $2.2 million a year to hundreds of organizations, and that he will be its chief executive, a part-time job. Donohue has confidence in Brady's leadership abilities after 12 years of working with him. Brady, who also has a decade of experience at Liberty Mutual, knows how the 1,100-person company is run and has built solid relationships with many of its outside agents. Arbella remains committed to its 'independent agent' model, despite the rise of direct, online insurance sales, in part because of the guidance the agents provide to customers. Advertisement For Donohue, the final months at Arbella have been a bittersweet time, without Bellotti, his mentor and friend. 'I would sit down and bounce ideas off him and talk strategy ... up until the end,' Donohue said. 'We got to work together for 44 years. ... We always said it was longer than most marriages.' Final piece for Fan Pier The Fallon Co. celebrated a topping-off ceremony for its 122-condo tower at Fan Pier on May 23. Photo courtesy of The Fallon Co. It all started with a helium balloon ride. Al Vaz , then the head of real estate at Vertex Pharmaceuticals , was visiting Fan Pier nearly two decades ago. At the time, the 21-acre site was not much more than a windswept stretch of parking lots. Developer Joe Fallon 's namesake firm used the balloon to show off its potential. Vaz, as Fallon recalls today, called Vertex's then-chief executive Josh Boger right away. Boger then visited the site and was smitten, too; he eventually inked a deal to bring the biotech and more than 1,000 of its employees to Fan Pier from Cambridge. The move in turn kicked off Fan Pier's redevelopment, jump-starting the Seaport's building boom. Last week, Fallon and colleagues joined the Iron Workers Local 7 and general contractor Turner Construction to help put the final piece of Fan Pier into place in a topping-off ceremony. They raised a steel girder to the top of the 14-story frame of what will be a 122-unit luxury condo project, dubbed 'One Harbor Shore.' ( Bank OZK provided financing last year, and MassMutual is Fallon's equity partner.) Advertisement When it opens in mid-2026, the building, designed by CBT Architects , will be among the first major privately developed structures in the city to rely almost entirely on electric heat. (Gas fired boilers will kick in when temps get close to zero degrees Fahrenheit.) Fan Pier now includes the two Vertex towers, the One Marina Park Drive tower where Fallon's company is located, as well as office buildings for MassMutual and Goodwin . Plus: more than 200 luxury waterfront condos at 22 and 50 Liberty. The Collaborative Companies will start marketing the units at One Harbor Shore in the coming weeks. 'We're proud of what we have, and we're proud of what it did for the city,' Fallon said. 'This site really became the catalyst for the whole Seaport.' Banking on Boston's Pride The scene at the Boston Pride for the People parade and festival last year. Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff Pride parades from Not in Boston. One of the leaders hosting Boston's Pride parade and festival to celebrate the region's LGBTQ+ community said fund-raising is now on a similar pace to last year, when around $700,000 was raised. So far, the total is in the $600,000 range, with more expected as the June 14 date approaches. Gary Daffin , of Boston Pride for the People's executive committee, says nearly half of that amount last year came from corporate sponsorships, and nearly half came from registration fees. (The group is affiliated with the Advertisement Daffin expects a similar budget this time around. So far, big sponsors are back — a list that includes Delta Air Lines , MFS Investment Management , the Boston Foundation , Beth Israel Lahey Health , Eastern Bank , MassMutual , Rockland Trust , Dana-Farber Cancer Institute , Eversource , and National Grid . Big-ticket corporate sponsorships range from $10,000 to $50,000. He said a few previous sponsors have not yet committed, but they're not among the big contributors. Daffin said the organizers had been concerned that fund-raising could take a hit because of economic uncertainties and the anti-DEI rhetoric in Washington. 'There was a fear that people were not going to reply to our requests,' Daffin said. 'But almost everyone who was there last year is back. ... It's a relief, though we still need a little bit more money. We're not there yet.' US Chamber to Boston: Be more welcoming Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce chief executive Jim Rooney chatted with US Chamber chief executive Suzanne Clark at the Boston Chamber's annual meeting. Photo courtesy of the Greater Boston Chamber US Chamber of Commerce chief executive Suzanne Clark has some advice for Boston's business leaders: Don't be afraid to be more welcoming to outsiders, particularly those with a different viewpoint. The suggestion emerged after Clark's speech at the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce 's annual meeting, which drew around 1,400 people to the Omni Hotel in the Seaport last week. Greater Boston Chamber chief executive Jim Rooney asked Clark to talk about how Boston and Massachusetts are viewed around the country in terms of competitiveness and business friendliness. Clark, whose group is more conservative than the Boston chamber, had many good things to say about Boston, praising everything from Fenway Park to the local innovation ecosystem. But her answer to Rooney's question prompted one of the evening's few unscripted moments. 'I would say that it's almost all positive,' Clark said. '[But] there is something going on right now where you have to decide what inclusive means to you, you know? Does diversity include conservative thought? Because there are a lot of people in this country who aren't sure, right? There's a lot of conversation about: Would I be welcome in Boston? Would I be welcome at some of the elite institutions? Would my viewpoint be welcome?' Advertisement On taxes and deregulation, the US Chamber is in strong alignment with President Trump. But they differ on tariffs, and the chamber recently sent a request to the Trump administration asking for exemptions for small businesses. Mostly, in her chamber speech, Clark made the case for stoking economic growth, saying that while it can't solve all of the nation's problems, it's tough to solve many of them without that growth. The chamber also honored its latest set of 'Distinguished Bostonians' for contributing to Boston's economic and social fabric. Honorees included Jane Steinmetz of Ernst & Young , Michael Curry of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers , and Anne Klibanski of Mass General Brigham . The chamber's previous board chairs, along with current chair Corey Thomas , feted Rooney with a video for his 10 years as chief executive. And Governor Maura Healey bounded up on stage to provide some encouragement to the business leaders while also making the case why she should be elected again in 2026. 'In a time of crisis, use it as an opportunity,' Healey said. 'We proved that 250 years ago when shots rang out by a bridge in Concord and a green in Lexington. That's Massachusetts. That's in our DNA. ... We're going to get through this and we're going to be stronger for it.' Advertisement Jon Chesto can be reached at
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
AM Best Revises Issuer Credit Rating Outlook to Positive for Members of Arbella Insurance Group
OLDWICK, N.J., January 28, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AM Best has revised the outlook to positive from stable for the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICRs) and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of "a" (Excellent) of Arbella Mutual Insurance Company and its three pooled insurance entities: Arbella Protection Insurance Company, Arbella Indemnity Insurance Company and Covenant Insurance Company (Farmington, CT). These companies are collectively known as Arbella Insurance Group (Arbella). The outlook of the FSR is stable. All companies are domiciled in Quincy, MA, unless otherwise specified. The Credit Ratings (ratings) reflect Arbella's balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM). The revised Long-Term ICR outlook to positive from stable is based on Arbella's key operating performance metrics coming into line with strong assessed rating units within its private passenger standard auto and homeowners composite on both a five-year and 10-year average basis. Additionally, Arbella has reported significantly improved underwriting results and operating performance in 2024, which were driven by management's numerous pricing, underwriting and claims initiatives. Arbella maintains very strong balance sheet strength, reflective of its strongest level of risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), modest underwriting leverage measures relative to its composite, strong liquidity measures, consistently favorable loss reserve development and a conservative investment risk profile. The balance sheet is protected from significant weather-related events through a comprehensive catastrophe reinsurance program. The group's risk-adjusted capitalization has trended upward recently from exposure reduction initiatives and increased catastrophe reinsurance coverage purchases. AM Best assesses Arbella's business profile as neutral, reflective of its long-standing market presence and market expertise in Massachusetts, strong distribution network and experienced management team. Arbella's ERM is assessed as appropriate for its risk profile, which is driven by its established ERM structure, refined risk management processes and comprehensive reinsurance program, which mitigates tail risk. This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best's website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best's Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best's Credit Ratings, Best's Performance Assessments, Best's Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best's Ratings & Assessments. AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit Copyright © 2025 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. View source version on Contacts Kenneth Tappen Senior Financial Analyst +1 908 882 2389 Christopher Sharkey Associate Director, Public Relations +1 908 882 2310 Christopher Draghi Director +1 908 882 1749 Al Slavin Senior Public Relations Specialist +1 908 882 2318 Sign in to access your portfolio
