Howden Re strengthens China market capability with three senior appointments

Three senior hires strengthen treaty, retrocession and agriculture expertise across Greater China and Asia Pacific

London, 24 June 2026 – Howden Re, the global reinsurance, capital markets and strategic advisory arm of Howden, has strengthened its commitment to the China market with three senior appointments across treaty, retrocession, and agriculture. 

Houqin Zhu joins as Managing Director, Head of China Treaty, Mike Xin joins as Managing Director, Head of Agriculture, APAC, and David Songjoins as Managing Director, Head of Retrocession, Greater China. 

Based in Hong Kong, the appointments further strengthen Howden Re's capabilities in areas that are central to the continued development of China’s reinsurance market. Together, they enhance the firm's ability to connect clients with global sources of capital, expand specialist expertise and support the development of future market talent.

Houqin Zhu joined on 17 June from Aon Re, where he served as Managing Director responsible for property and casualty reinsurance across Hong Kong and China. He brings more than four decades of experience across the Chinese and international reinsurance markets, having previously held senior leadership roles at Willis Re and TigerRisk before its acquisition by Howden Group and subsequent rebranding as Howden Re. As Head of China Treaty, he will lead the expansion of Howden Re's treaty capabilities in China while acting as a senior mentor to the next generation of treaty professionals, a role the firm sees as central to its presence in the market.

Mike Xin joins on 13 July from Gallagher Re, where he served as Executive Director responsible for China agricultural reinsurance and APAC regional business. He brings more than 20 years of specialist experience in agricultural reinsurance, having previously held senior roles at JLT Re and Aon Benfield. As Head of Agriculture, APAC, he will support the growth of Howden Re's agricultural capabilities across the region with the China market playing a key part, helping clients in one of the world’s largest and most strategically significant agricultural insurance markets access reinsurance capacity worldwide.

David Song joins from Guy Carpenter, where he served as Deputy Head of Hong Kong and Senior Vice President responsible for retrocession, China state-owned enterprise clients and Hong Kong local clients. Before working for 14 years in Guy Carpenter, he spent 8 years at Aon Re China Ltd., played a pivotal role in establishing a sustainable and growing book of P&C and Agriculture business. He brings nearly 30 years of experience in the reinsurance broking and strategic planning, with deep local knowledge and extensive expertise across the Hong Kong and Mainland China markets. His career spans a wide range of disciplines, including Property & Casualty, Agriculture, Retrocession, ILS etc. He will focus on strengthening Howden Re's retrocession offering and supporting reinsurers in accessing broader sources of capacity across Hong Kong and China. David will join Howden Re in October once his contractual obligations to his previous employer have been fulfilled.

Andy Souter, Head of Asia Pacific, Howden Re International, said, "China is a key reinsurance market, driven by its scale, growing demand for risk transfer and increasing importance within the global insurance landscape. It remains a strategic priority for Howden Re. Houqin, David, and Mike each bring deep market expertise strong client relationships and highly complementary capabilities. Working alongside our established Hong Kong team, they further strengthen our ability to bring the full breadth of Howden Re's expertise to clients, delivering solutions tailored to their individual needs. Their appointments reflect Howden’s collaborative approach to client advisory and reinforce our long-term commitment to China and the wider APAC region as the market continues to evolve."

Houqin Zhu, Managing Director and Head of China Treaty at Howden Re, commented, “China's insurance and reinsurance market continues to evolve, creating significant opportunities as clients navigate an increasingly dynamic risk environment.  Howden Re’s combination of local expertise, global reach and specialist capability creates a strong platform to support clients as the market develops. "I am pleased to be joining the business and look forward to working with clients and colleagues to help deliver innovative solutions and long-term value."

This is the latest in a series of senior hires reinforcing Howden Re’s commitment to Hong Kong and China as a strategic focus for Howden Re as it continues to build specialist capabilities across the Asia-Pacific region. Recent appointments in the region include John Philipsz as Head of ANZ; Cynthia Cui’s’s promotion to Head of Asia-Pacific Facultative; Henry To as Chairman of Hong Kong, Candy Wong as Managing Director and Head of Treaty Hong Kong, and Roy Wong as Managing Director in Hong Kong; and Jimmy Tsai as Managing Director in Taiwan.