Home insurtech Hippo Insurance has tapped two heavy hitters for its boardroom. Laura Hay and Susan Holliday, both long-time leaders in insurance and finance, are stepping in with committee roles that cut straight into the company’s regulatory and strategic backbone.
Laura Hay, formerly Global Head of Insurance at KPMG International, now joins Hippo’s Audit, Risk, and Compliance Committee as well as the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
At KPMG, she built out the firm’s financial services sector, overseeing 10,000 professionals across 90 countries while advising boards on growth strategy, innovation, and risk management. She continues to sit on the boards of MetLife, Everest Group, and the Girl Scouts of Greater New York.
According to Hippo, her track record in growth, risk oversight, and inclusive leadership translates directly into value for the company’s next phase.
Susan Holliday brings a different flavor. A former member of Swiss Re’s global executive team, she once shaped strategy for the reinsurer’s $24.5 bn business and advised on early insurtech investments.
At the same time, she pushed initiatives like the IFC Women and Insurance program. Her résumé stretches across UBS, Swiss Re, the World Bank, and a roster of regulated entities. She’ll serve on Hippo’s Audit, Risk, and Compliance Committee as well as the Compensation Committee.
She’s chaired Audit and Risk Committees in Europe and Africa, with deep experience in capital markets, governance, and cross-border regulation.
Her background, Hippo says, sharpens its ability to manage profitable growth and push technology adoption while tightening governance. Beyond Swiss Re, she’s held board seats at Acrisure Re and Tangerine Financial.
In January, Hippo has appointed William Malone as Vice President and Head of Agency. Malone, with 25 years of industry experience, will oversee sales, account management, and customer support.
His previous leadership roles include positions at Chubb, Hartford, Liberty Mutual, and GEICO. Rick McCathron, Hippo’s CEO and President, expressed excitement about Malone’s addition to the team. He featured Malone’s extensive experience in leading agent sales and support teams across various agency settings and product lines in the P&C sector.
Hippo CEO Rick McCathron called their appointments a vote of confidence.
Adding leaders of Laura Hay and Susan Holliday’s caliber to Hippo’s Board is a strong endorsement of the direction we’re headed.
Rick McCathron, Hippo CEO
“Their deep expertise in insurance and financial services, combined with proven success guiding complex organizations through growth, transformation, and disciplined risk management, will be invaluable,” Rick McCathron says.
Both, he argued, combine industry expertise with proven success guiding complex organizations through growth, transformation, and disciplined risk management.
With that experience and their passion for customer-centric innovation, they will help us continue to mature our business and build a stronger, more resilient Hippo for the future.
Hay said she sees Hippo as positioned at a “pivotal time,” citing its focus on customer experience, innovation, and risk discipline as reasons she joined.
Holliday echoed that, describing Hippo’s diversified model across markets and business lines as a strong base for sustainable growth — and an opportunity to help shape what insurance looks like in the coming years.
I look forward to contributing to Hippo’s mission and growth journey. Hippo’s diversified approach across markets and lines of business creates a strong foundation for sustainable growth and makes this an exciting time to help shape the future of insurance.
Susan Holliday
Hippo is a technology-enabled insurance group that uses its hybrid fronting platform to diversify risk across both personal and commercial lines.
Through the Hippo Homeowners Insurance Program, the company applies deep industry expertise and advanced underwriting to deliver proactive, tailored coverage for homeowners.
Hippo reported its first-ever positive net income in Q2 2025, closing the quarter with $1 mn in profit. Gross written premium reached $299mn, up 16% from $258mn a year earlier. Growth came primarily from the company’s hybrid fronting strategy.
This milestone reflects a combination of revenue growth, a broader premium mix, a lower consolidated net loss ratio, stronger operating efficiency, and reduced stock-based compensation costs.
Quarterly operating expenses for sales and marketing, tech and development, and general and administrative functions fell by $6mn compared to Q2 2024 — a 16% year-over-year drop.
Existing programs added $24mn in organic growth (up 13%), while new programs contributed another $23mn.
Meanwhile, gross written premiums for Hippo’s core home insurance product declined 9% year-over-year.
The company’s cash and investment holdings (excluding restricted cash) rose by $76mn quarter-over-quarter, reaching $604mn. Most of that increase came from the issuance of a $50mn surplus note.
